


Eternal Sunshine of a Tweekless Mind

by OlderEcho



Category: South Park
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - College/University, Angst with a Happy Ending, Based on Movie, Break Up, Drama, Fluff and Angst, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Memory Alteration, Memory Loss, Post-Break Up, Romance, excessive use of ellipsis
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-01
Updated: 2020-09-02
Packaged: 2021-03-06 22:34:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 30,229
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26236471
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/OlderEcho/pseuds/OlderEcho
Summary: After Craig and Tweek break up - Craig tries to make amends, but discovers that Tweek is acting like he doesn't even know WHO Craig is. As he looks for answers, he finds out that Tweek 'erased' him from his memory with a controversial procedure. Hurt and angry, Craig retaliates by undergoing the same procedure in order to forget about Tweek and their failed relationship.But as he begins to loose each precious memory that he and Tweek had with one another... Craig regrets his decision.
Relationships: Craig Tucker/Tweek Tweak
Comments: 16
Kudos: 38





	1. How Could You

"I just don't _get_ it," Craig muttered as he shook his head, "He looked at me like-- ...like he didn't even know me!" He trailed off, voice laced in heartache. "I know we didn't end on good terms but... I didn't think it was THAT bad." he admitted.  
  


Clyde was sitting on his bed, looking a bit awkward about the whole situation.  
  


Craig had shown up at his house to talk about the whole ordeal with Tweek. But he was being quiet... which was rare for Clyde. Normally he'd be telling Craig to jump back on the saddle, or fuck someone else - or regurgitate some bullshit about this "all being for the best". But this time, the brunette was just quiet... like he knew something.

Finally, he sighed, "Maybe you should just... forget about it? Move on?" He suggested.  
  


"I _can't_ forget about it." Craig snapped quickly. "He's been my best friend for ten years... and _four_ of those he was my goddamn boyfriend. I don't want to spend our final year of college not speaking. We've been through too much together." He said.  
  


His mind immediately drifted back to seeing Tweek earlier that day...  
  


\- - - - - -   
  


_Tweek was working in a small bookstore downtown part-time, while still also taking a few shifts at a coffee shop. He really liked the job (since it wasn't as much 'pressure' as working in the coffee shop with impatient customers) and Craig had gone down there to try and make amends._

_It had been about two weeks since they'd broken up. And while things had gotten bad for the couple, Craig hadn't really seen it coming... and yet, he was the one to pull the plug. He knew that. But after having lost Tweek, he'd realized how much he missed him; how much he needed him. So Craig had gone down to the bookstore with a small gift for the small blond._

_But when he walked up to the counter - smiling at Tweek hesitantly, his ex looked up at him blankly. He blinked. It wasn't a rude look, or even a cold or unhappy one... but just a 'look'._  
  


_"N-Ngh... c-can I help you?" Tweek asked._  
  


_"Um..." Craig began, as he looked to Tweek more closely. He wasn't mistaken; this WAS Tweek. But why was his best friend looking at him like he'd never seen him before in his life?_  
  


_Another voice broke through the awkward silence, addressing Tweek, "There's my favourite book-bear." the young man said._

  
_Turning, both Craig and Tweek looked to see another twenty-something leaning against the other side of the counter._  
  


_"H-Hey," Tweek smiled, sliding his chair over toward where the boy was standing. But his eyes glanced back to Craig, and he nodded politely, "L-Let me know if -nngh- you n-need anything." He said, addressing Craig like he was just a customer: just a customer?_

  
_Craig stood there for another second - watching the unknown guy and Tweek talking rather closely. 'He had another boyfriend already?' Craig thought bitterly, 'And why the fuck was he pretending not to know who he was?!'_

_Clutching the small gift he'd gotten Tweek, Craig shoved it back into his coat pocket and walked quickly out of the store._

\- - - - - -

"It was so weird." Craig continued, shaking his head again as he looked back to Clyde.

  
The brunette still seemed to be avoiding his gaze. Pausing, Craig grabbed for his coat and began to slide it on. "I've gotta go to his house... I've gotta--... just _talk_ to him." He said decisively. 

  
But Clyde stood, "Craig, you can't."

  
The raven-haired boy looked back to his friend, frowning, and clearly about to open his mouth to argue. But Clyde cut him off with nothing more than a long, defeated sigh.

  
He could only watch as Clyde (reluctantly) made his way over toward a small desk in his room. Opening the drawer, he pulled out a small piece of paper and handed it to Craig. 

  
It looked like a small telegram - beige in color, and it had a logo at the bottom, which read _MEPHESTO INC._

  
It simply stated:

>   
>  **Dear Clyde Donovan,**
> 
> **Tweek Tweak has erased Craig Tucker from his memory.**
> 
> **Please never mention their relationship to him again.**
> 
> **Thank you.  
>    
>  **

  
Craig read it over about six times. "....Are you for real? This can't be real,"  
  


"Look man, whatever happened between you two is... gone." Clyde said reluctantly.  
  


But that wasn't enough for him, "What **IS** this?!" He snapped. Waving it in the air. "This isn't even fucking possible! And _why_ would he erase me?!"   
  


"I don't know, Craig. It's just some 'place' that... does a thing..." Clyde trailed off sadly, not really giving the best description of Mephesto Inc. "But Tweek obviously had his reasons. I mean, you didn't SEE him, man. He was really distraught when you guys called it off... things had gotten really bad, and, I dunno--... maybe he just couldn't handle it?"

  
Craig wanted to keep arguing, but he knew it would do no good. This was all just so unreal. "Who ELSE got these?" He said, referring to the telegrams.

  
"Everyone... I think? Well, everyone who was friends with you both - and knew you as a couple." Clyde admitted.  
  


Tossing the telegram aside, Craig stormed out of Clyde's apartment. He emerged from the shabby apartment building into the cold, snowy night and got into his car; driving back to his own place in absolute silence.

  
He couldn't believe it.

  
His BEST friend... had _erased_ him. They'd been dating for four years, and THIS was how Tweek wanted to end it? - By erasing Craig _completely_ from his memory?

  
_He didn't know things had gotten that bad..._  
  


Pulling the apartment parking lot, Craig barely had time to turn his car off before he broke down and started crying; pounding his fists and hands against the steering wheel, punching the roof and windows before finally resting his forearms on his steering wheel and slumping forward.  
  


If THIS was the game that Tweek wanted to play... then Craig would play it.

  
He would find this company - and he would just erase Tweek from HIS memory. Tit for tat.   
  


At least then he wouldn't be plagued by the hollowing heartache he was feeling now. _Tweek hated him enough to wipe him out of his memory. His best friend, recent ex-boyfriend..._  
  


He'd never felt more alone, and more resentful; years of friendship, adventures and memories just down the drain. Gone.

"Sir? You have a Mr. Tucker here? He's the one who's been, um... calling constantly." The receptionist said as she cracked open the door to the scientist's office.  
  


The older man nodded, "Ah yes. Send him in." he muttered, motioning to her with his hand.  
  
  
Backing out, the young woman was soon replaced by Craig. He walked in, looking rather tired and exhausted - but with an air of determination swirling around him. "Mr. Tucker, it's nice to meet face to face. Please, sit." Dr. Mephesto said, giving him a smile.  
  


Slumping into the chair on the other side of the doctor's desk - Craig simply tossed the telegram he'd taken from Clyde onto it.  
  


"I want to do it." Craig said simply.  
  


Quirking a brow, the scientist reached over and picked up their telegram. Reading it over, he nodded. "Ah yes... Tweek Tweak." He mumbled. Looking back to the formidable and broody young man before him, he sighed. "You were not supposed to see this. I'm terribly sorry, and I do apologize."  
  


"I want to DO it." Craig repeated firmly. "Tweek erased me for a reason, and if I can't know WHY... then _I_ want to forget _him_."  
  


Mephesto furrowed his brow, setting the telegram down, "Our files are confidential Mr. Tucker... so we can't show you any statements or consultation records." He paused, typing something into his computer, and pulling up the file on Tweek. "Suffice it to say, Mr. Tweak was... not happy, and he wanted to move on. We provide that possibility." Mephesto explained. "Now, given the circumstances of this particular situation... I would be willing to perform the procedure on you. If you're sure, that is." He said.

  
Craig paused - did he really want to forget Tweek?

  
He had loved him more than anyone else. He'd _always_ been there for Tweek. But really, what did that matter? The blond didn't remember him - and he had decided to erase Craig FIRST.   
  


"Yes." Craig answered finally.

  
What was the point of remembering someone who didn't remember you? "But, uh... is this... safe?" he asked tentatively. "Like, my brain isn't going to be permanently damaged or fried, is it? I won't forget my parents, or anything?" He asked.  
  


Mephesto chuckled. "Well, technically speaking, the operation **is** brain damage, but it's on a par with... a night of heavy drinking." He described with a casual shrug. "Nothing you'll miss." He explained. "The memories that will be erased will relate to Mr. Tweak only. We have the best, and most efficient technology at our fingertips here, Mr. Tucker. There's a reason we've started in South Park - since technically, this procedure isn't _widely_ accepted. Many consider it controversial. BUT our results have been excellent so far."

  
Craig nodded slowly.  
  


"So... what do I need to do?" He asked.  
  


The scientist stood, handing Craig a small pamphlet. "We need to do some analysis and tests on you the day prior - do a base reading. You'll want to empty your home... rather, empty your _life_ , of Mr. Tweak. Gather up anything and everything in your possession that might remind you of him. Books, movies, games, pictures." He listed, jotting a few notes into a file folder, "Bring everything here. When we do your analysis, we will map your mind based on the internal response to seeing the items you've brought."

  
Craig nodded, shifting in his chair as an unsettling feeling swirled in his stomach. "We'll dispose of these 'mementos' when we're done here, that way you won't be confused by their unexplainable presence in your home." Mephesto finished.  
  


He still couldn't believe his relationship with Tweek had been reduced to this.

Lying down on the rather soft bed, Craig shifted awkwardly.

  
Fuck. He was actually doing this.

  
He had gathered up everything in his apartment that might remind him of Tweek: pictures, books, cards, movies, and the occasional coffee mug. Craig had brought everything in a black trash bag to Mephesto's weird building on the outskirts of South Park, and handed it over.

  
After some blood tests, he found himself in a room that looked kind of 'hospital-like'; white sheets and a single comfortable bed. There were strange machines around him, but they looked harmless enough (no sharp needles, or anything that looked too nefarious, thank god).  
  


A guy slightly older than Craig sat beside him in front of a narrow, portable computer - he was hooking him up to the system; placing small discs and wires around his forehead and some on his arms to monitor his physical response.   
  


"This... isn't dangerous, right?" Craig asked again, narrowing his eyes.  
  


The other guy smiled, "No. Perfectly safe. I've done this about a dozen times... everyone turns out fine." He nodded. "Doctor Mephesto will be in soon. He oversees everything." He reassured him. Pausing, he smiled again, "My name is Gregory, by the way." Though it wasn't too long before another thought occurred to the British assistant, and he laughed, "...Not that _you'll_ remember."  
  


"Yeah... nice to meet you," Craig mumbled with an annoyed sigh. _Why did this guy insist on making lame jokes about this?_ He wasn't in the mood.

  
The doctor had told him that along with any memories they erased involving Tweek, they would also erase any memory of Mephesto's involvement - obviously, since this event in itself would be linked to Tweak, and the source of Craig's initial pain.  
  


But the arrival of Dr.Mephesto distracted Craig's nerves.   
  


"Ah, wonderful... you're on your way, are you Mr. Tucker?" He smiled. "Good. We'll get started shortly. The results from your initial physical reading and scan all look good. We've done a map of your internal memory by gauging your reaction to seeing each item you brought in." he hummed, adjusting his glasses to look at whatever was on the screen Gregory had up.  
  
"It will now be a simple measure of going through each of these mapped memories, and removing them."  
  


Craig tried to calm the nerves raging inside him. His gray eyes looked over to see Mephesto approaching him with a needle.   
  


_Well, he couldn't turn back now... this was happening...._  
  


_He was about to forget all about Tweek fucking Tweak._  
  


He blinked as he felt the needle briefly pierce his skin, before it was removed. "This is just an anesthetic. You'll be asleep for the whole process." The doctor explained. "When the procedure is over, you'll be taken back home and wake up in bed."   
  


Craig still didn't say anything - he just let out a few deep breaths.  
  


His eyes began to get heavy.  
  


"Is the map up?" Mephesto asked - obviously talking to Gregory.  
  


The Brit nodded, "Yes, sir. Everything's normal. As soon as he is asleep, we'll set."  
  


But Craig's eyes were already drooping wearily. He was feeling so sleepy; drugged almost, like a heavy warmth was slowly flooding over his body, starting from his legs - up his stomach, across his chest - and finally to his head.

  
A fuzzy darkness began to waft through his mind, and before he knew it - he was gone.  
  


And the procedure began...


	2. It Begins

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The next few chapters will be 'memory' based - that is, all taking place in Craig's head while he is consciously aware of what's happening. Sometimes watching himself, sometimes participating in the memory directly.
> 
> The timeline of their relationship is going BACKWARDS; most recent memories first (i.e. their breakup) to their earliest ones (i.e. beginning to date, etc)

  
When Craig opened his eyes - he was surprised to see that he was standing in Dr.Mephesto's office.

 _Huh. That's weird..._ he had thought he'd still lying on that table in that weird room.  
  


Taking a few steps forward, his eyes focused on Mephesto as he sat at his desk. _"Mr. Tucker, it's nice to meet face to face. Please, sit." Dr. Mephesto said, giving him a smile._

_Slumping into the chair on the other side of the doctor's desk - Craig simply tossed the telegram he'd taken from Clyde onto it. "I want to do it." Craig said simply.  
  
_

Craig watched curiously.

"Oh... it's... started." He mumbled to himself. Jesus this was fucked up. He was going to watch his memories? What the hell?  
  


_Quirking a brow, the scientist reached over and picked up their telegram. Reading it over, he nodded. "Ah yes... Tweek Tweak." He mumbled. Looking back to the formidable and broody young man before him, he sighed. "You were not supposed to see this. I'm terribly sorry, and I do apologize."_

_"I want to DO it." Craig repeated firmly. "Tweek erased me for a reason, and if I can't know WHY... then I want to forget him."_

  
Craig took a moment to examine himself. Damn. He was rather good looking, if he did say so himself; he had always wondered how he appeared to other people. But now, Craig could see why other people might think he was an odd match for a twitchy, paranoid blond.   
  


_Mephesto furrowed his brow, setting the telegram down, "Our files are confidential Mr. Tucker... so we can't show you any statements or consultation records." He paused, typing something into his computer, and pulling up the file on Tweek. "Suffice it to say, Mr. Tweak was... not happy, and he wanted to move on. We provide that possibility." Mephesto explained. "Now, given the circumstances of this particular situation... I would be willing to perform the procedure on you. If you're sure, that is." He said._

Fuck. He was actually doing this... it was happening now, and apparently, he was going to be an audience member. Maybe a participant. Who fucking knew what was going to happen. 

Soon the room was overtaken in darkness, and Craig felt himself falling...

 _It was an unsettling feeling, he even started to panic a bit until--_

  
\- - - -

  
Craig was snapped out of that panic as he suddenly hit the ground; wincing, even though he didn't really feel any pain. "God dammit," He mumbled to himself, standing and looking around. 

He was in... the bookstore? 

Curiously, Craig walked around the oddly colored shelves of books... before he spotted himself at the bookstore reception desk.

There was Tweek. 

Craig knew he was in the memory that happened earlier that day; when he'd gone to the bookstore to give Tweek a gift, but the blond pretended like he didn't know who he was.

Well, not 'pretended'... as it turned out he didn't, in fact, know who Craig was.

That scene, too, however quickly snapped into darkness.

Craig blinked a few times - and when he opened his eyes, he was in his bedroom, sitting on the corner of his bed...

  
\- - - -

  
_Tweek was there, anxiously rummaging through Craig's things and pulling out items that belonged to him; shirts he'd left at Craig's, a few coffee mugs, a cd or two... the twitchy blond was shoving all his personal items into a duffel-bag.  
  
_

"This was the last time I saw you..." Craig whispered quietly in awe to himself as he watched Tweek rummage through his room. 

He remembered this particular memory very well. It was the most recent one he had of their relationship... Craig figured the procedure must have been going backward in its order of erasing Tweek from his memory.  
  


_"I-I don't want you to come anywhere NEAR me, man." Tweek said angrily, though his beautiful, big hazel eyes were brimming with tears. "I-I can't take this anymore! Nngh! It's way too much pressure! I can't do it! I ... I won't!" He stammered._

_Craig shrugged, eying Tweek coldly from the bed he was sat on. "Fine." his voice sounded removed and bitter. "You won't last a day without me."_  
  


Being in that memory again... reliving and watching it, Craig felt his heart lurch.

Why had he been such an asshole? Had he honestly missed Tweek's body language? Hunched, trembling, avoiding eye-contact, shrinking into himself... the blond looked back to him, doing his best to stay angry - but Craig could see how destroyed Tweek actually was. His pain showed through as his lower lip trembled.

Fuck. Why hadn't he NOTICED that before? Things were always easier to pick up the second time around.  
  
  


_Lifting his eyes again, he watched Tweek storm out of his room - the door slamming behind him. There were retreating footfalls through his apartment, before the distant sound of his front door slamming was heard too._  
  


Conscious enough in these repeating memories, Craig stood and tried to follow Tweek. But the door was locked; it wouldn't open, no matter how hard he pulled.

 _What the fuck!? Open!..._ he thought to himself. But then it hit him.  
  


It _wouldn't_ open...

Because when that had happened, Craig _hadn't_ followed; he remembered staying in his room and smoking a cigarette instead - stewing over how happy he was going to be now that Tweek was gone.

But now... Craig just felt remorse. Break up or not, he didn't have to speak to Tweek like that.

Ramming his shoulder against the door, Craig tried in vein to break it down.

The room was getting darker and darker as he tried; his doppleganger memory doing nothing to help, just sprawled on his bed smoking absently.

Finally, the door busted open, and Craig stumbled through.

Unfortunately, he didn't end up in his hallway... but instead, ended up right back in his bedroom. 

Looking around in confusion, Craig cursed. "Fuck!" He yelled. 

Closing his eyes, Craig felt that 'falling' feeling overtake him again - lapsed in darkness and dizziness as that memory was wiped from his mind...

  
\- - - -

  
Opening his eyes and blinking again - Craig found he was now in Shakey's Restaurant. With Tweek. 

They were sitting in a booth, and neither one looked happy to be there.

Craig couldn't help but stare at Tweek. Already, he was starting to think that maybe this _wasn't_ such a good idea.

The blond was so fragile looking, but ...beautiful. The way his jagged, wild blond hair fell around his face, framing it almost angelically. Those big doe-eyes, normally so alive with life and spark. Though he couldn't help but notice now that Tweek's eyes seemed more sad: depressed... tired.  
  
It nearly broke Craig's heart, now that he was looking back at it.

"Tweek..." He mumbled to himself.

He knew the blond wouldn't respond to him. But it was heart wrenching to realize that he was going to have to 're-live' these memories through his own eyes; so Tweek was looking at HIM painfully. But now he was aware of it.  
  
  


_"T-This isn't working. Y-You can't expect me to... just... BE COOL with this!" He pleaded. "Jesus Christ, I don't know what else I can do! Nngh! Is it m-me?" He asked._

_Craig barely hesitated, "It IS you, Tweek. I can't fucking take care of you anymore. It's a twenty-four hour job! ... You're always hurting yourself, or bumping into things.. muttering about gnomes or conspiracy theories. I have to get you to eat, sleep and do NORMAL, everyday things! Fuck... even Stripe hadn't needed THIS much attention." He snarled, rolling his eyes._

"I take that back..." Craig cut in quickly, shaking his head and looking to Tweek. "I... --it wasn't a big deal. We could have fixed it." He said.

But the memory of Tweek clearly didn't hear. 

_"T-Then... maybe we should just break up, man! Nngh! ...I-I don't want to be a burden to you. Y-You're an asshole, and... you'll probably SNAP if I keep annoying you." He stammered anxiously. "I-I don't need this! ... T-T-There's... --I'm sure there's someone else who-who WANTS to be with me."_

_"Pft." Craig scoffs, giving a rather cold laugh. "Good luck. You're a weirdo, Tweek. You are where you are because of me, and all the effort I put into this doomed fucking relationship." He said. "So if you wanna break up now, fine. Saves me the trouble of breaking it to you in a week."_

Craig buried his face into his hands. Fuck! Why had he been such an dick? Why was he trying to pretend like this didn't hurt? 

  
  
\- - - -

  
  
The next thing he knew, he was flopping back down on Tweek's bed. 

  
It was late, and he'd managed to stumble his way right into Tweek's apartment with his key, eventually finding the blond's bedroom.

He took a few deep breaths as Tweek sat in his desk chair, staring at him blankly. "It's -nngh- 3am." he muttered unhappily. 

Craig sighed, "I kinnnnnda... soooooorta... broke... your mug." He mumbled, referring to the coffee cup Tweek had gotten him when they'd first started dating.

He wasn't a big coffee drinker before, but being with Tweek had converted him to one. Naturally, he never drank as MUCH as the blond, but he liked to have a cup with him each morning. "Annnnd dented my... car..."

Craig sighed as he watched the scene between him and Tweek unfold before his eyes.

_"D-Driving drunk." Tweek flinched, glaring at him. "T-That's -nngh- pathetic."_

_The noirette closed his eyes irritably. "I was a little tipsy, I'm not wasted. Fuck." He said sharply, stretching his arms up with a groan. "Don't call me pathetic."_

_"W-Well it IS p-pathetic! ...God, y-you could have killed someone, man!" Tweek stammered anxiously, both upset and concerned for his boyfriend - who seemed to be lashing out more and more. "S-Should I -nngh- check your c-car for children or small ANIMALS?" He muttered, tugging at a small piece of his hair._

_Craig pinched the bridge of his nose before he rubbed his eyes. "God, Tweek, I didn't KILL anybody... it's just a fucking dent." He sighed; not in the mood for being lectured. "You're such a pussy sometimes."_

_"S-So... you're a... a... skidmark." He said; finally thinking of a word._

_Craig barked out a laugh, scoffing as he did. "Jesus, what the fuck kind of insult is that. A skidmark?" He repeated, shaking his head. "Face it, Tweekers..." He began, turning onto his stomach to look over at the blond, who was still perched at his desk. "You're freaked out, because I was out LATE... without you..." He pointed out with a smug smirk. "And in your wormy, little brain - you're trying to figure out: Did he **fuck** someone tonight?" He taunted in a low purr._  
  


It was a low blow.

Craig knew just how to hurt Tweek after years of being together - and looking back on it now, it made Craig sick. The blond's eyes were already glossed over with tears, but at the time, Craig didn't remember noticing. 

_"G-Get out." Tweek glared weakly as his whole body trembled._

_Craig rolled his eyes and dragged himself out of the blond's familiar bed, back over toward the door. He stumbled back through Tweek's apartment (vaguely remembering being pissed off that he had to go all the way back to his own apartment now) - before leaving, and slamming the front door behind him; the cold night air struck Craig in the face..._

  
\- - - -

  
As soon as he'd left Tweek's front door, Craig had moved again.

The cold night air only lasted a second or two, before it replaced by a warmer sensation...

He was in his bedroom; lying in bed with the twitchy blond beside him... but he was unusually still. Craig's eyes shifted around the dark room.

_"...W-Why don't you want to?" Tweek asked nervously; his voice laced in embarrassment. "J-Jesus, is it me? I don't know what to do, I... -nngh- have I gotten ugly? I don't have aids. I-I already got a test!"_

_Craig sighed frustratingly, "No Tweek, Jesus Christ. I just don't fucking FEEL like it." He said; his monotone voice stern as it echoed through the darkness._

_"... B-But I don't understand! Y-You don't seem like you **like** me anymore! Nngh! You... look like you don't wanna touch me, and -mph- that was never the c-case before." He mumbles painfully._

_But once again, Craig sighed. "God, you're such a freak. Just drop it." He spat quietly._

Those words seemed to fly back and stab Craig in the chest.

Closing his eyes, he turned over from his previous position of lying on his back and ignoring the trembling blond boy beside him - and faced him.  
  
  


_His gray eyes ran over the 'memory' of Tweek as he lay beside him. He was looking right at him - his eyes brimming with hurt tears.  
  
  
_

Tweek hated being called a freak. And Craig knew it. "Tweek... I'm _so_ sorry..." Craig whispered, reaching out and touching Tweek's cheek.

  
But as he was about to do that, suddenly, the blond boy shimmered and vanished from sight.  
  


Now lying in his dark room - in his bed alone - Craig closed his own eyes to stop himself from crying.

This was horrible. He didn't WANT to relive these memories with Tweek... things had gotten so bad. He'd acted like such an asshole... and all because he was scared.

He had started to become fucking terrified of how much he loved Tweek. So Craig's answer had been to push the blond away; to start trouble, to pick fights.

Of course it didn't help that Tweek had erased HIM first.

If there was one thing Craig was truly good at, it was holding a grudge. And finding out that his blond ex-lover had erased him had pissed him off. But now... he couldn't help but wonder if Tweek had gone through the same thing he was right now; watching and reliving his memories as they were erased one-by-one. 

  
He wondered if Tweek regretted the decision... like he was...

  
\- - - -

  
Letting out a sigh, Craig opened his eyes yet again - already tired of watching himself behave like a jackass. Especially since he couldn't do anything about it.  
  


He was walking down the street now; his hands stuffed into his pockets. He knew that had been one of the first signs for Tweek, since Craig ALWAYS held the blonde's hand. Even in the last years of their time at elementary school... he remembered he started holding Tweek's hand to keep the boy calm and on track.

_"S-So do you wanna come over?" Tweek asked, giving his boyfriend a brave (but nervous) smile._

_He'd been growing more and more distant... and it was obvious that the blond could tell._

_Craig shrugged, "Nah. I should spend more time with Ruby." He answered, still not looking over at Tweek. "And Thomas asked me to come over later."_  
  


It was a hurtful excuse, and they both knew it. 

"Hurry up and erase this." Craig spat out loudly - like he was trying to talk to Gregory and Dr. Mephesto, who were working their way through these memories. 

He didn't get any response... obviously they couldn't hear him.

_Tweek drew his eyes down, "O-Oh..." He answered sadly as they continued to walk.  
  
_

"I'm erasing you, and I'm **happy**..." Craig blurted out to Tweek as he continued to walk. "By morning you'll be gone." He suddenly felt angry; knowing all of this was Tweek's fault.

Of _course_ it was Tweek's fault! He'd erased him first!  
  


But his subconscious was happily chirping away at him from deep within - asking whether he could truly blame Tweek for doing so, if this was what he'd been enduring.

Growling in frustration as he looked at the twitchy blond walking solemnly beside him, Craig felt that familiar darkness looming up behind them.

This memory was fading...

  
  
\- - - -

  
  
A flash suddenly struck right in front of Craig's eyes and he jolted back from the initial shock of it.

Blinking rapidly, the noirette found he was in one of the campus lecture hallways; standing near a small coffee outlet with Tweek, while the blond was waiting for his coffee and balancing books in his arms.

_"Hey guys, --SHIT!" Thomas greeted._

_Craig smiled toward the other boy. "Hey Thomas."_

_"H-Hi..." Tweek muttered unhappily, his mood already shifting with the sudden interruption._

_Thomas looked back to Craig with a bashful smile. "Shitfag! A-Are you, uh, ready for class?" He asked._

_"Yeah." Craig nodded with a flirty smile. He adjusted his bookbag over his shoulder. "See you later, Tweek." He muttered absently to Tweek, before nudging Thomas playfully as they headed off down the hall._  
  
  


He winced.

Fuck, fuck fuck.

No goodbye? No kiss? No hug? No nothing? Why had he become so careless?

Why didn't he take TWO seconds to say goodbye to his boyfriend? He knew Tweek didn't like Thomas. And it wasn't because Thomas was a bad kid, but because he'd always been afraid that he would STEAL Craig from him.And Craig knew that. For all his reassurances, Tweek had a hard time fighting his more self-conscious thoughts, worried Craig would realize he could do better. He'd confessed it to him a number of times.

Unfortunately, as their relationship began to strain, Craig HAD done the asshole thing and began spending more time with Thomas just to spite him. Like twisting a knife.

As they moved further down the hall together, Craig looked back to see Tweek standing there alone; his large hazel-eyes clearly vulnerable as he watched Craig walk away with Thomas.

Frowning, Craig shifted his eyes, and for the first time, noticed that none of the other students walking by had faces.

"...The fuck?" He muttered to himself.

  
The memory dissolved...

  
\- - - -

  
He remembered getting tired of it.

Protecting Tweek was a full time job. He hadn't realized it before, but it had given him a sense of purpose, it a weird fucked up kind of way.

Now that everything had unraveled, Craig felt guilty... and actually missed protecting Tweek. They were barely apart during the time of their relationship - from friendship to dating; it was hard (and rare) to see one without the other.

Looking around, Craig found he was back in his apartment.   
  
  


_It was a rainy afternoon, and Tweek was over. The blond was sitting on Craig's couch; cutely wrapped in a blanket. There was a bowl of popcorn on the table, that had a few kernels strewn about - and a movie was playing on the television._

"I remember this," Craig mumbled to himself.

It was one of the last, semi-happy times he and Tweek had in their more recent history, before things began to fall apart. 

_The house had a faded blue tint to it; no lights were on, and the only source was the glow from the television, and the dull, rainy Saturday that lingered outside his living room window._

Moving over to the couch, Craig grasped Tweek's shoulders in his hands, "Tweek, we've gotta do something..." He said calmly, though there was a clear hint of desperation in his voice.

"....W-What do you mean?" The blond answered.

Craig was a bit surprised to hear his 'memory' respond to him. 

Then again, the thought occurred to him that he WAS in his head... so, shouldn't he be able to control things?

This particular memory involved him and Tweek simply sitting on the couch together and cuddling while they watched movies. He knew eventually, he'd make a move on the blond and they'd eventually have a nice, slow fuck on his sofa.  
  


But THIS particular exchange wasn't real - this was all in his subconscious; he was _imagining_ that Tweek could consciously hear him, so the spectre was responding.  
  


"They're erasing you. I'm erasing you... _you_ erased me!" Craig explained quickly, knowing it wouldn't be too long before this memory faded with the others.

Tweek twitched rapidly, "W-Well ...how are you -nngh- gonna change that?! You can't do it. They're in your head! It's all over! They'll ...probably turn you into a robot!" He exclaimed anxiously. "If this is your head, t-then I'm not even real!" The blond theorized.  
  


Good lord. His imagination when it came to Tweek was eerily accurate; a sign he'd really known the blond inside and out.  
  


"Well I wouldn't be IN this situation if it wasn't for you." Craig said, a bit angrily.

The blond trembled, "Nngh! I-I'm sorry! ...Y-You know me! I just panic and DO things." Tweek explained anxiously. "I-It was just... im-impulsive! I'm rash. Jesus, I didn't know!"

Oddly enough, Craig smiled and pulled Tweek closer to him. "You _are_ impulsive. And unpredictable." He said quietly, his eyes running over Tweek's features. "That's part of what I love about you..." 

Leaning in, Craig pressed his forehead against Tweek's - closing his eyes as he felt that familiar, surrounding darkness creeping in.

He sighed heavily.

He didn't want to loose ALL his memories, anymore... not like this...

  
\- - - -

  
Craig winced as the cut above his eyebrow stung...  
  


  
_Tweek continued to dab alcohol on the wound as he cleaned it._

_"T-Thank you for s-standing up for me..." He said quietly, a sheepish smile falling on his lips._

_Craig sighed, "It's my job, isn't it?" his voice wasn't exactly enthusiastic about the situation. This was just another - in a long list - of times that he'd had to defend Tweek. "What was it THIS time?" He asked with a weary sigh._

_While he never really 'lost' fights, that didn't mean Craig's body didn't undergo a deal of strain and injury. His opponents often got in a few good hits along the way._

_"Nngh!" Tweek winced, continuing to tend to his wounds. "C-Cartman wanted some money, but... but I said - n-no, and then -nnh- he threatened me, so I tried to FIND it in m-my pockets, but nothing was there! AND I t-told him that... nngh... the underwear gnomes probably took my MONEY!" He finished in a rush.  
_

_Craig sighed. "Not **again** with the underwear gnomes." He growled. "You're too old for this shit, Tweek. STOP it."_

_The blond looked down sheepishly and bit his lower lip._

Craig looked back up to Tweek apologetically, but this memory was over - and the darkness was looming in once more...

  
\- - - -

  
_He held Cartman's bloodstained jacket in his clenched fist as he stood over him. While the bully had endured MOST of the damage during their fight, Craig still had a cut above his eyebrow. Ignoring the stinging pain around his wound, he glared at his opponent. "If you TOUCH him again... I'll kill your stupid bitch girlfriend and your coked-up mother you fucking fatass." He threatened._

_"F-Fuck you, asshole." Cartman groaned, his head already dizzy from fighting._

_Sneering at him, Craig dropped Cartman and let him fall back to the ground._

_He pushed past the small gathering of students who'd stopped to watch the fight take place in the small quad outside the Science building. Craig focused back on Tweek, who was watching in horror as he approached him._

_Draping his arm around Tweek's shoulder, Craig led them both away and started to walk away from the scene. At least campus was big and busy enough that they could disappear._

"I don't know how many fights I got in." Craig mumbled aloud to himself as they walked - but the memory of Tweek beside him said nothing; he couldn't hear him. "I always thought they were BECAUSE of you... but... they were for you." He said to himself. Turning, Craig looked down at the blond cowering beside them as they walked.

  
\- - - -

  
When Craig opened his eyes, people surrounded him; they were laughing, drinking, and socializing in the familiar, HUGE living room of Token's mansion.

This time, he wasn't interacting with the memory... but he was an outside observer.  
  


He locked on to himself - standing against the wall, and far too close to Thomas. _They both looked a little tipsy, and Craig knew himself well enough to know his 'moves'. He looked like he was outwardly hitting on him._  
  


Wincing at his own bravado for flirting with someone else while he had a boyfriend - his eyes immediately sought out Tweek.  
  


_He was standing off to the other side; he was in a group with Kyle, Stan and Kenny - who were talking and obviously a little sauced themselves. But Tweek wasn't engaged with them... he was too busy staring across the room at Craig, with a heartbroken, worried gaze.  
  
_

Craig walked over, moving to stand beside Tweek as he looked down at him. "Stop watching me." Craig muttered to his memory; as if telling this 'replay' of Tweek to look away would do ANY good now.

He really hated this. He HATED watching that he was - clearly - the downfall of their relationship. Nothing was ever going to be perfect. And he knew that. But while things were rough, that was no excuse for him behaving the way he did; doing and saying those things to Tweek.

While he was mad that Tweek had erased him... Craig had to admit, the blond had a good reason. Wouldn't anyone? These past few memories were torture. How could he have been so cold and brazen in flaunting the fact that he was flat-out distancing himself from Tweek?  
  


The whole room flickered, and soon, it was completely empty... _except for Tweek, who was still standing in the same spot, looking across the room. And Craig and Thomas were still visible - on the other side._  
  


"Erase ALL of it." Craig snapped toward the ceiling, still trying to get the Mephesto and Gregory to hear him somehow, while they worked on deleting his memories.  
  


Soon, the room flickered oddly again - and Craig was finally left alone, as darkness enveloped the mansion once more...

  
\- - - - 

  
With another flicker of light, Craig found himself standing in front of Tweek's bedroom door. _He'd let himself into the blond's apartment after numerous phone calls had gone unanswered._

_"Tweek, I'm sorry... please just open the door." He encouraged, knocking a few times as he let out a heavy sigh. "It can happen to anyone. Hell, I don't remember my own MOTHER'S half the time."_

_He heard a strained sob from behind the door. "Nngh! I-I've... never forgotten y-your birthday..."_

_"I know." Craig answered, resting his head against the door. "There's no excuse." He reassured him, though deep down, Craig knew **why** he'd forgotten. _

_He'd been hanging out with Thomas and Clyde playing video games. Craig had spent the night at his own apartment, and he'd gotten an early morning call from Clyde - who had been repeatedly annoying and hounding him with requests to hang out._

_So, he'd gone over, and completely forgotten that it was Tweek's birthday._

_"Tweek, please come out." He coaxed. "I got you a chocolate cake... with coffee flavored ice cream." Craig said, hoping he might be able to bribe the blond's forgiveness. When he was only met with more silence, Craig sighed. "Well... I'll be in the kitchen when you're ready." He said, trailing his eyes over the door once more before he headed back down the hall._

"I'm such an asshole," Craig muttered to himself. "Asshole, asshole, asshole." He repeated. 

There was another flicker of light, and an odd shift in the room... almost like a record skipping. It was trippy, and kind of frightening, but Craig knew it had something to do with this whole procedure. 

_Suddenly, Tweek was tentatively coming out of his room and down the hall; Craig stood up from the couch._

_"I'm sorry, Tweek." He apologized again. The blond wouldn't look up at him, perhaps in order to stop himself from crying. Walking over to his boyfriend, Craig took his hand and led him down the rest of the way, and into the small kitchen._

_There, was a little chocolate cake with a candle on it. "Forgive me?" Craig asked, nestling his nose against the side of Tweek's head with a small smile._

_"Nngh... y-yes..." The short blond answered._

While Craig had accepted the answer at the time, now that he was looking back on the memory... it didn't sound right. Barely convincing. And there was still hurt lingering in Tweek's eyes. Had he just decided to play dumb? To pretend like everything was ok? H _e watched as his memory-self and Tweek got the coffee-flavored ice cream, and began to eat it with the cake._

  
Craig wanted to swear to himself that he'd never forget Tweek's birthday EVER again...  
  


But obviously that wasn't possible. If this procedure kept going, he wouldn't remember Tweek PERIOD - nevermind his birthday.  
  


The room flickered and skipped again, and soon, Craig was falling back into yet another memory...


	3. Call It Off

Craig's eyes fluttered open a bit; he felt warm and safe...

The familiar scent of Tweek's room alerted him that he was in another memory.

_He could feel Tweek's lips lightly brushing across his neck and cheek in gentle, grazing kisses. Craig opened his eyes just a crack to see that it was morning, before he closed them again with a weary sight._

_"Y-You don't tell me things -nngh- Craig..." Tweek whispered sadly. "I t-tell you everything... every e-embarrassing t-thing." He continued. "Don't you -nngh- trust me?"_

_Craig sighed, keeping his eyes closed. "Constantly talking or spouting conspiracy theories **isn't** communicating, Tweek." He answered lazily._

_There was a small, uncomfortable silence, which Craig did his best to ignore._

_"I-I... don't do that..." Tweek replied; his voice laced with hurt. "I-I want to <b>know</b> you." The blond clarified._

_He felt Tweek's lips and nose nuzzling behind his ear affectionately again. "Hmm?" Craig murmured, still tired enough to think what Tweek was talking about wasn't all that important._

_"I don't -nngh- c-constantly talk!" Tweek suddenly said defensively; clearly, he was getting tired that Craig was ignoring him when he was trying to have a real discussion. "J-Jesus man! P-People have to SHARE t-things... nngh... that's ...w-what intimacy is, a-asshole." He continued with a frown._

_Craig sighed, opening his eyes a bit. "Sorry, sorry... **fuck**..." He mumbled, holding up a tired hand to signal Tweek to calm down. _

_He still didn't seem all that bothered by Tweek's little hissy fit. "My life is boring. There's not a lot to share. I just..." He shrugged casually, not even bothering to finish his explanation as to why he never really talked about his feelings or passion._

_He honestly didn't know what to say at the time._

_"W-What are we -nngh- doing then?" Tweek asked impatiently. "W-Why are we even -ack- bothering? If... if y-you don't have any feelings... or-or passion, or l-love?"_

_Craig sighed, turning onto his side in order to curve around Tweek's body. He buried his head into the crook of Tweek's neck; kissing the skin there gently in the hopes of soothing the blond away from the awkward topic he'd chosen to bring up this morning._

_But Tweek just moved away from him, slipping right out of the bed._

_Craig groaned and decided to stay there; he figured if Tweek woke UP in a pissy mood, he'd be in one all day - so why bother getting up to follow him and try to apologize for being so vague?_

_Tweek should know how he is by now... Craig Tucker was a mystery, but his motivations and feelings weren't rocket science. At least, he didn't think so._

Propping himself up in the bed, Craig looked around but didn't see Tweek. He should have just answered his question... he could have at least told Tweek that his passion and his love was **him** ; that he just wanted to stay with Tweek as long as he possibly could, and get out of this shitty town.

Instead, he'd acted like an asshole, yet again - and ruined a moment his boyfriend was trying to have with him.

He figured this was the true beginning of their deteriorating relationship. And he couldn't help but view this memory in a whole different light, now that it was replaying in front of him.

But this wasn't the worst of it.

He knew what was coming.

Watching and re-living their happy moments were going to be ten times worse.

  
_Slipping through the door of the coffee shop, Craig stood toward the back - his eyes shifting behind the counter to notice his twitchy blond moving back and forth, doing his best to keep things clean and organized. That in itself might seem like a horrible task for Tweek... but Craig was always surprised at how GOOD he was at his job._

_Tweek wasn't nearly as uncoordinated as people thought. And he'd only grown into himself more and more with each passing year._

  
"I came here so many times to meet you, to get you, to... wait for you..." Craig mumbled to himself as he sunk back into the memory.   
  


_His eyes focused on a familiar face. Christophe. He hadn't seen the self-proclaimed Mercenary in years. But he must have dropped back into town, because now he was standing at the serving counter chatting up Tweek._

  
Craig remembered this day; he'd come in and saw what he THOUGHT was Christophe hitting on Tweek. It irked him to no end, and he'd put an immediate stop to it by running Christophe off.

He'd always been a bit jealous and possessive, but looking back, Craig wondered if he'd been stifling Tweek. Did he have to ward off EVERYONE that went near the blond? How come he hadn't trusted him? It's not like Tweek would ever cheat on HIM. He was fiercely loyal, and he'd been clear that there wasn't anyone else for him by Craig.

  
_Craig walked over to the counter, catching the tail end of their conversation,_

_"... eet looks cute." Christophe shrugged with a small smirk._

_Craig leaned against the counter, right beside the Frenchman. "What looks cute?" He asked in a dry tone. When Tweek turned, his face flushed and he began to twitch a bit more. Christophe didn't seem too phased. "Come on. Let me in on what's so cute." He repeated more insistently, standing upright to lord his (minor) height advantage over Christophe._

_The Frenchman stood up to his full height too. Fuck, he was slightly taller._

_"Nozhing." Christophe mumbled, taking his coffee as Tweek nervously set it on the counter. Looking back to the blond, the Merc nodded, "Merci. I weel see you around, oui?" He said, giving Tweek another small smile before he left._

_Craig watched him leave closely, before he turned back to Tweek. "What looks cute? Tell me." He repeated._

_"I-I... nngh... I just a-asked him if he --thought you'd like -nngh- this s-shirt..." He stammered, blushing and tugging on the hem of his ill-buttoned shirt. It WAS a new shirt, and Craig realized he actually hadn't seen it before._

_Feeling slightly bad at running off Christophe, Craig reached across the counter and tugged on the string of Tweek's apron; forcing the blond the lean across the counter with a small squeak - before kissing him on the lips. "It **does** look cute." He reassured him gently._

_Tweek blushed and smiled._

Craig's eyes ran over him.

Fuck... why had he ever wanted to give someone like this up? Tweek Tweak (contrary to Craig Tucker) would never hurt a soul; not emotionally, and certainly not physically. At least, not on purpose. Not without extreme circumstances (he could only really count their grade-school fight so much, since they'd been manipulated into that).

As the room began to shimmer and distort, Craig kept his hand clutched around the string of Tweek's apron... like if he didn't let go, they couldn't erase this memory...

When he blinked, he wasn't clutching onto Tweek's apron anymore... instead, his hands were clenching the steering wheel of his car. His NEW car to be exact. 

_"What do you think?" Craig asked, glancing toward Tweek as he parked the car at Stark's Pond._

_The twitchy blond beside him gave a playful smile. "It's m-much better -nggh- then your b-broken truck." He stammered._

_"I loved that truck." He sighed nostalgically._

_Tweek blushed, "B-But this car makes you -nngh- even s-sexier."_

_Craig raised a brow and looked to his boyfriend. Tweek clasped his hands over his mouth and emitted a small, anxious noise - before flushing an even deeper red._

_"Seriously?" Craig asked._

_Tweek began to tremble, "I-I'm sorry! I-I didn't mean t-to sound... nngh... I-I mean... I didn't... um... erk..." He sputtered._

_Craig couldn't help but laugh as he reached over and pulled Tweek out of his seat._

_The blond shifted awkwardly, going wherever Craig pulled him willingly, before he finally ended up straddling Craig's lap on the driver's side._

_"T-This is a bad idea! What if I hit a w-wrong lever, and the car -ack - goes straight into the POND? ...W-What if I honk the horn? What if the -nngh- parking break fails and we go out of contol?!" He ranted._

_Craig silenced those fears by capturing Tweek's lips with his own, while his hands soothingly rubbed along the blond's hips and thighs as he sat perched on his lap; nestled between Craig and the steering wheel. Tweek eventually began to relax, and sunk into the kiss as his fingers began to play with Craig's hair._

_"Nngh..." Tweek moaned as their lips parted. "D-Do... these seats... g-go back?" He asked sheepishly, glancing down with a small smile._

_Craig grinned wickedly, before he suddenly released the seat and allowed it to fall backward to its full downright position._

_Tweek let out a scream; mumbling something about the car falling apart, before Craig began to kiss him again. Tweek writhed himself atop Craig's broader body as they began to fool around; breaking in Craig's new car._

Craig wrapped his arms around Tweek, squeezing the memory tightly as they kissed...

When Craig opened his eyes he was no longer in the car, but flat on his back in his own backyard.

Looking beside him, he saw Tweek also lying there; occasionally he twitched, but otherwise, he was fairly calm. Somber, even. It was the early evening; the sky was just changing to blue, pink and purple.

Confused initially as to what memory it was, Craig looked on the other side of him to see a small headstone, which read; STRIPE

"The funeral..." He mumbled to himself, as it all came back to him.

_Tweek turned and looked at Craig anxiously, "A-Are you -nngh- feeling better?" He asked gently._

_"No." Craig answered, perhaps a bit more bluntly than he should have. Stripe was a longtime pet, and he was going to miss the loyal animal. Part of the reason he'd love him so much was because he was so quiet; sure, he made the occasional squeak or noise, but he was soft, cuddly, and wouldn't talk back to him or give him attitude about HIS attitude._

_Loosing Stripe had been more devastating than Craig cared to admit._

_Craig's attention turned from the small, makeshift headstone, when he felt Tweek nestle up beside him, and wrap his arms around his waist. "H-He was a -nngh- great pet... and... h-he was lucky to h-have such a caring owner..." Tweek offered gently, as his fingers began to play with the strings of Craig's chullo while he rested his head on his chest. "You t-took care of him before everything else... I-I know -nngh- he loved you j-just as much as you loved him. S-Sometimes people aren't even -gah- loved as m-much as you loved S-Stripe."_

_Something about that struck Craig, and he looked down at the blond by his side._

_Shifting over, the Craig re-positioned them a bit, so he was propping himself up over Tweek. His boyfriend looked up at him a bit curiously... even slightly nervous; perhaps worried he'd said something wrong._

_"I loved Stripe." Craig muttered deeply. "But... I still have someone to take care of." He said, running his blue-gray eyes over Tweek's face. "I still have someone who loves me... and... someone that I love."_

_A small, grateful smile slowly grew on Tweek's lips as he looked adoringly up toward Craig. Leaning down, they exchanged a light, tender kiss..._

"No." Craig said aloud, as they finished kissing. "I don't want to forget this one..." He said. "Leave it here." He begged, pressing his forehead against the memory of Tweek.

He'd been the only one to comfort him; the ONLY person who'd been able to make him feel better about loosing Stripe after so many years.

Everyone else had just said something along the lines of: _'oh that sucks'_ or _'stripe was still alive?_ ' ... But Tweek had reassured Craig's fear that he hadn't been a good owner.

He WAS a good owner, but he didn't want Tweek to feel like he was second place. Tweek had never been second...

At least... he hadn't intended Tweek to ever feel like it.

  
_"Can I open them now?" Craig asked, a small smile playing at the corner of his lips as he lay on his bed. He had a magazine lying over his face, since Tweek had said that he had something to show him. He heard rustling around, accompanied by small squeaks or the occasional: 'Oh God!'..._

_Finally, he heard the rustling settle._

_"O-Ok... -nngh- open!" Tweek announced loudly._

_Craig took the magazine away from his face, and was met with the nervous (but smiling) face of his blond boyfriend, sporting a new, green button-up shirt, an overly bright orange hoodie, and new jeans that hugged him in all the right places. "D-Do you like it?" He asked._

_"Shiiiiiiiiiiit, Tweek..." Craig laughed, watching as Tweek turned around to further model his new outfit. "It's hot. But that sweater makes you look like a tangerine."_

_The blond rolled his eyes, anxiously making his way to the bed to climb onto it and over Craig. "R-Really? ...Nngh... I-I hope no one tries to e-eat me." He teased sheepishly as he crawled over top of his dark-haired boyfriend._

_"I like tangerines." Craig purred as Tweek lowered his head, and they shared a kiss._

_He ran his hands up the other boy's slender body, tracing his familiar shape; the fabric of the new clothing was soft. "I'm hungry... I could go for a tangerine right about now." Craig continued huskily._

_Tweek squeaked and quickly rolled off Craig and onto the floor. "I-I don't want to rip -nngh- these new CLOTHES, man!" He laughed, scampering across the floor and behind one of the curtains in his bedroom; it was dulling the light that shone outside - but when Tweek got up between it and the window, Craig could still clearly see his silhouette._

_"Tweekers..." Craig coaxed with a small chuckle, rolling off the bed as well after his boyfriend; feeling a bit more playful. Tweek's happy and flirtatious mood was infectious._

_But Tweek ignored his call, already distracted._

_"C-Can you see me... -nngh- making d-ducks?..." He asked, shaping his hands behind the curtain where the light was pouring in. His shadow could be seen on the floor, and as he moved his hands up, the rough silhouette of a make-shift duck could be seen. Though it kind of looked like a dog. "Quack... Q-Quack..." Tweek mimicked cutely as he moved his hands._

  
  
Craig sat on the floor, staring up adoringly at the blond behind the curtain, childishly playing with making his hands into shadow figures on the bedroom floor. 

"I don't want to forget this..." Craig said desperately. "Not THIS one, either!" He pleaded; well aware he'd asked to keep the previous memory, and that hadn't happened.

Losing the bad memories - maybe he could live with that.

But loosing the GOOD memories was turning out to be gut-wrenching.

Crawling over to the curtains, Craig tried to angrily rip them down in the hopes of seeing Tweek before this memory fizzled; instead, the curtains came down on top of him, obstructing his view as the room grew dark.

He growled and struggled to get himself out of the tangled mess of fabric...

  
  


When he finally tore the curtains off his head, he wasn't in Tweek's bedroom anymore.

Suddenly, Craig was in the woods. 

_It was daylight again - early morning; crisp fall weather suddenly assaulting his senses. Looking around, Craig took a few steps forward, "Tweek?" He called._

_As he rounded one particular tree - he was startled at the sight of a twitchy blond jumping out at him._   
  


"Jesus, Tweek!" Craig exclaimed, caught off guard as his heart raced. He forgot that this was the morning he and Tweek decided to skip their college lectures, before they'd wrapped up the day going to see a movie. Tweek had gone around hiding in different places, and Craig went around to find him.  
  


The blond actually laughed at the sight of a startled Craig; it wasn't a sight anyone saw too often. Then again, neither was the sight of Tweek actually laughing.

  
"Tweek... I'm so sorry. I'm so stupid..." Craig pleaded, walking along behind the memory of Tweek as they moved through the forest.  
  


The blond twitched, but seemed content, "I-I know, but there's nothing -nngh- you can do now." He said with a shrug. "Y-You should just relax. E-Enjoy the scenery." 

  
"No, I've gotta stop it." Craig said with an air of determination to his voice; he quickened his pace in order to walk beside Tweek. "I've gotta wake up before I don't know you anymore." He said, looking to the blond intensely. "I don't want to FORGET these anymore."  
  
  
Tweek sat down on a large fallen tree, still twitching a bit as he took a healthy gulp from his thermos. "W-Well... j-just... c-cancel it then!" He suggested with a shrug.

  
"I _can't_ cancel it, they've already started! I've already lost some memories of you..." Craig lamented.   
  


The blond twitched again - brow furrowing cutely as he thought. "Oh! T-Then... wake yourself up!" He yelled anxiously, gesturing wildly.  
  


Craig sighed, but didn't answer. Glancing toward Tweek dubiously, he closed his eyes and tried to pinch himself really hard.  
  
  
When he opened his eyes, he was still sitting on that fallen tree, in his memory, with Tweek.   
  


The blond looked to him hopefully, "Nngh! ....Did it w-work?"  
  


"Oh yeah. I'm awake right now." Craig retorted sarcastically.  
  


The blond looked down shyly - and once again, Craig felt bad. Why did he say things like that to Tweek? The poor guy didn't deserve it, and the more Craig saw him, the worse he felt. He was just frustrated. And panicking. There was no need to take it out on his sub-conscious manifestation of Tweek.

Leaning over, he pulled the blond onto his lap and wrapped his arms around him, nestling his nose against his boyfriend's. Lifting his chin, their lips brushed against one another and Craig sighed...  
  


When he opened his eyes, his arms were wrapped around nothing but thin air, and Tweek was gone. He was alone again.  
  


Standing up, Craig looked around the woods wildly - beginning to panic as the true reality of what he'd done began to set in. 

They were erasing Tweek from his everything; from his soul... his mind... his heart. He was loosing memories left and right, and they wouldn't stop until he ceased to know Tweek Tweak: _the boy he loved, the boy he needed, the boy whose heart he'd crushed._

  
"I want to stop..." Craig whispered to himself, his eyes beginning to tear up. Running through the woods a little ways, he yelled out, "I wanna call it off!" He shouted toward the sky, praying that Gregory or Mephesto would hear him. 

Turning around frantically, he looked up again and screamed: "Can you hear me?! I WANT TO CALL IT OFF!"

Panting heavily, Craig looked around, trying to think of a way out; any way to wake himself up and stop this whole fucking procedure before the past ten years of his life became a waste...

Spotting a steep hill, Craig bolted toward it - running full speed, preparing to throw himself off it. With any luck, he'd be able to jerk himself awake. That's how these things worked, right? If you hurt yourself or 'fell' in a dream, you woke up.

Gritting his teeth together, Craig reached the end of the steep edge, and jumped... 

Instead of landing on a forest floor, Craig jolted up in the darkness; stars and an open field surrounding him as he found himself in the back of his old truck.

Looking around confusedly, he noticed that the truck was parked on a hill - and was facing a drive-in screen that was further down. 

"Fuck..." Craig mumbled to himself.

_He and Tweek had gotten into the habit of watching FREE drive-in movies by parking on the neighboring hill and turning the car radio to the same frequency that was used for the paying customers. It was kind of sneaky, but neither one of them were stupid enough to waste money on something they could do for free._

  
Though it was hard to enjoy this trip down 'memory lane'... since Craig was all too aware it would be his LAST trip. The bridges were literally burning down behind him.  
  


_He felt Tweek snuggle up closer to him as they lay in the back of the truck, watching the film. "W-Why did you agree to -nngh- this movie?" The blond laughed quietly._

_"Hey, you're the one who wanted to see it." Craig reminded him with a smirk, holding him closer._

_Tweek scrunched his nose a bit, "Y-You're remembering it w-wrong." He argued cutely._   
  


  
Craig sighed and held Tweek closer to him, forcing the blond to look at him. "I want to _stop_ this, Tweek." He sighed. "We need to think of a way to hide you." He mumbled, before he paused. "Or at least... the MEMORY of you."  
  


"Y-You're still -nngh- on t-that?" He asked curiously. "J-Just enjoy the m-movie."   
  


Craig frowned, "No, Tweek. I don't want to give up." He insisted, "We're not done. This was such a bad, fuckin' idea." He grumbled, sliding out of the back of the open-ended truck, and tugging Tweek with him.  
  


"Nngh! W-Where are we going!?" The blond asked quickly.  


Craig pulled him along as he marched across the open field, away from his vehicle. "I'm gonna try and hide you." He snapped. "This is MY head, so I can do whatever I want, right?! I mean... I _should_ be able to... " Craig reassured himself; if he believed it, it could be true.  
  


Wrapping Tweek in his arms, Craig closed his eyes. "Don't let go until I TELL you." He ordered. The blond squeaked and reluctantly did as he was asked.  
  


Craig forced his mind to project him somewhere else... somewhere he could hide Tweek...  
  


Maybe in a memory Tweek never really EXISTED in before; after all, if he took Tweek to a memory where he didn't belong - the doctor and his intern performing this procedure couldn't FIND him, right?

He'd be able to keep a piece of Tweek alive...

When he opened his eyes, Craig was surprised to find himself in a pet store.

He furrowed his brow, and noticed Tweek was still in his arms. "Fuck... it worked!" He beamed, looking around and holding the blond tighter. His eyes finally settled on a couple of people further down the pet isle. 

It was him... at least... a seven year old version of him. God, he was so small. Craig watched as he and his mother pointed out one particular guinea pig that they liked to the pet shop employee, who began to fish him out from amongst the others.

"This was when I first got Stripe..." Craig recalled aloud.

Tweek flinched, looking around in utter confusion. "B-But -gah- I wasn't here for this!" He said, anxiously stating the obvious.

"Exactly." Craig smirked. "They won't be able to find you in THIS memory... because THIS memory had nothing to do with you. So I can hide you in here... and when I wake up tomorrow... I'll still remember you." He smiled in relief...

  
\- - - - - - -

  
Gregory frowned. "Hmm..." He mumbled.

Dr.Mephesto was busy looking through some files and didn't look up. "What is it, Gregory?" He asked lazily, flipping through some papers.

"Ah... Mr. Tucker is... off the map." He mused.

The doctor sat up and looked over at him. "What do you mean he's off the map?"

"The map. The digital map and layout we'd structured to erase... he's not responding, now. I'm not getting a reading." the Brit further explained.

Dr. Mephesto stood up and headed over to Craig's sleeping body as it lay motionless. Examining him to see if he was mistakenly conscious or in any kind of mental or emotional distress, he was able to assess that the young man was fine (in theory). Blood pressure normal, heart-rate consistent.

Moving over to the computer, he took over for Gregory and began to extend the map of Craig's mind - looking for the section where he could find an active reading. 

"It's not... possible he's hiding... right?" Gregory asked tentatively. "It certainly wouldn't be the first time that's happened." He added, "That twitchy drug addict we did the other week did something similar when I was erasing his memory." Gregory huffed. "Took me three hours to find him. He just kept jumping around into random memories. And really... what the fuck ARE underpants gnomes, anyway?" He trailed off.

Dr. Mephesto sighed, ignoring Gregory's irritable rant for the moment as he searched. "There..." The older man said finally; getting a lock on the active part of Craig's memory.

"Very strange, indeed..." He mused, "He is in a memory that is in no way related to the subject. But, there's also no proof that the jump from the memory-map was intentional. Sometimes the mind can simply revert back to a place of peace and happiness an individual is stressed. Or experience a sensation of grief; loss." He pointed out. Typing a few quick commands, the Doctor sighed. "Let's get Mr. Tucker back on track, shall we? I'd like to finish before 1am this time."

  
  
\- - - - - - -  
  


  
Craig and Tweek wandered around the memory of the pet store; Craig fiercely holding his hand and refusing to let go.

"W-Why are all these cages just -nngh- filled with guinea pigs?" Tweek asked curiously, leaning against Craig as they walked down different isles.

He shrugged, moving to wrap his arm around Tweek. "I dunno. Maybe because I was just a kid... and... I didn't notice any other animals? The memory is a fucked up place, and not ENTIRELY accurate. Trust me." He muttered, having seen enough weird shit over the past-- ...

_Wait... how long had he been inside his head? Craig realized he had no concept of time in here._

"G-GAah!" Tweek exclaimed, bringing Craig from his thought.

Looking up to see his blond boyfriend looking terrified - Craig saw he was staring down the length of the pet store... lights were shutting off one by one; a darkness approaching them.

Craig clenched his teeth. "Fuck!" He yelled, now having first-hand experience of what his memories tended to do before they got erased. "Son of a bitch! Fuck you!" He yelled to the ceiling, hoping that the Doctor could hear him. 

Didn't that give them some kind of clue!? If he was going so far as to try and _hide_ in other, un-mapped memories... didn't that tell them he didn't WANT to do this anymore?

"C-Christ! It's over m-man! Nngh!" Tweek stressed, tugging on his shirt as his other hand clenched into Craig's strong, desperate grip. "Y-You can't hide me d-deep enough! They'll FIND me!"

He narrowed his eyes, throwing his arms around his boyfriend. "Fuck that!" He snapped, closing his eyes and willing himself into another memory. He'd done it before; he could do it again, right...

_Opening his eyes again, Craig found he was in bed; he was panting heavily and lying on his back. He suddenly became painfully aware of how aroused he was... his stiff dick was in his hand as he continued masturbating..._

  
"Ack! T-That's SICK!" The nervous blond exclaimed turning away, lying in bed beside him.   
  


Craig had to be about sixteen in this memory. "S-Shut up..." Craig panted, continuing to masturbate.  
  


_"Craig, honey?" The sound of his mom's voice came from outside his room. His eyes shot open as his mother walked in; Tweek tried to hunker down beneath the sheets of Craig's bed (not that it mattered, since the memory of his 'mother' wouldn't be able to see his wayward 'memory' of Tweek hiding out in his bed). "I made some snacks for your sister and---" She froze when she noticed her son, lying on his bed, frantically trying to hide his erection. "Oh!... I-I'm... so sorry." She cleared her throat and immediately backed out of the room. "Um... I'll just... leave them out for you, ok?" She called as she closed the door._

_The noirette sunk back, groaning in complete humiliation._

Fuck.

He'd forgotten that his mother had walked in on him masturbating when he was younger. It was one of those awkward moments that most boys experienced... but that didn't make it any better.

Suddenly, Craig heard Tweek giggling hysterically from beneath the sheets.

"Shut the fuck up!" He hissed uncomfortably; blushing deeply and turning on his side to face away from the boyfriend he was trying so desperately to save.

Alright, so he hadn't really been thinking when he decided to transfer them both to THIS humiliating point in his memory.

The blond giggled and spooned up against Craig's back. "A-Aw Craig... it's -nngh- ok... it happens to everyone..." He said, still trying to stifle his cute laugh. 

"Fuck you." He sighed in obvious embarrassment. "Fuck you _so_ hard." He growled.

Tweek smiled, "T-That would be more effective than -nngh- masturbating, h-huh?" He teased.

"What?!" Craig yelled, turning and grabbing Tweek.

The blond squeaked and laughed as Craig wrapped his arms around him playfully and began to kiss him all over his face. "I guess this is a small price to pay if I get to keep you hidden." He huffed. "So you saw me masturbating... big deal. I can live with that. We fucked like bunnies, so it's not like my big cock is a surprise." He shrugged.

Tweek blushed and laughed, "B-Big cock, huh?" he grinned, blushing before he grumbled; "B-But I've never seen -nngh- sixteen year o-old Craig j-jacking himself off..." He pointed out. "I feel like a p-pedophile, man!" He shifted.

  
\- - - - - - -

  
"Fuck." Gregory sighed. "Sorry... ah... he's off the map again."

Dr. Mephesto sighed, coming back around toward the computer. "Well... voluntary or not, this is becoming bothersome." He said to himself, typing a few commands and beginning to search Craig's brain for stimulated activity. 

  
\- - - - - - -

  
Tweek and Craig had shifted under his blankets and were lying in his bed. "D-Do you hear -nngh- that?" the blond asked curiously, hearing something that sounded like wind.

Craig furrowed his brow. "...What?"

Tweek peeked out of the sheets, before his facial expression changed, and he sat right up. "L-Look! C-C-Craig!" He squeaked excitedly.

Pulling himself from beneath the covers, Craig found they were still in bed... but no longer in his room.

They were in the middle of Stark's fucking Pond.

"Fuck!" Craig cursed, realizing that Gregory OR Mephesto was successfully putting him back on track, once again.

  
Well... there goes the memory of him getting caught masturbating by his mother...

At least that wasn't one he'd miss.

  
_"Gah! It's gonna BREAK!" Tweek screamed as Craig tugged him along on the ice._

_They were at Stark's Pond; the whole thing was solidly frozen over, while around them the empty fields were complete snow covered; illuminating everything with crisp, white snow. Picturesque. Peaceful._

_Craig laughed, pulling the reluctant blond along anyway. "Tweek, every year we come here - and every year you freak out... and EVERY year... nothing happens." He chuckled._

_They weren't skating; Craig had just wanted to slide around the ice on his boots. Unfortunately, he lost his footing, and went tumbling down onto his back after looking his grip on the slippery, frozen surface._

_Tweek tumbled right down with him._

_Surprisingly, the blond laughed instead of panicking. Smiling back, Craig wrapped his arms around Tweek, who shifted and positioned himself to straddle Craig's waist. Craig sat up and wrapped his arms around the blond perched on his thighs._

_Craig nestled his nose against Tweek's. "I love you." He hummed._

_"I-I -nngh- love you..." The blond answered quickly, wrapping his arms even tighter around Craig's neck as they sat on the ice._

_Craig lifted his chin as Tweek snuggled his head into his neck and chest, enjoying just being held. He took a deep breath, and looked up to the chilly starry sky above. "I could die right now, Tweek. I'm just... happy. I've never felt that before." He admitted genuinely. "I'm exactly where I wanna be..."_   
  


Realizing he couldn't do ANYTHING to escape this, Craig's eyes began to well up with tears again... 

He closed his eyes; regretting ever setting foot in Mephesto's fucking company.

He could hear a crowd of people moving and chattering. Craig slowly opened his eyes; they were still teary, even now. Though he found himself in one of the college lecture halls again... not on a frozen Stark's Pond with Tweek.

  
  
_He shifted slightly as students filed past him like drones, before he caught sight of Tweek emerging anxiously from the class. As soon as he saw Craig, his face lit up and he scurried over to him. "H-Hi..." He greeted, snuggling into Craig's chest._   
  


He smiled back sadly, wrapping his arms around Tweek. How could he let go of all this? He'd tried everything he could think of to stop them from completely wiping Tweek from his mind... but nothing had worked.  
  


"I asked you if you missed me..." He said gently; bleary, heartbroken eyes still looking at the blond before him.  
  
  


_Tweek smiled and blushed, "I-I always miss you..." The memory answered. "B-But not as much as you -nngh- miss me."_

Craig smiled as he and Tweek began to walk down the hall.

"You have no idea how right you were, Tweek." Craig sighed, talking to himself again as he stared at the blond he walked hand in hand with. "I always thought YOU would miss me more than I'd ever miss you." He described. 

  
  
_They stopped at the small, express coffee-stand near the door of the lecture hall._

"I hope you regretted this as much as I do." He continued to speak to the memory like it was actually his Tweek. "I hope you realized what a mistake this was... how stupid we were, and... how easy it would have been to fix it - if we'd both known what we'd be giving up." He continued sadly. 

His eyes ran over Tweek's face, as the memory began to babble on silently about whatever it is they'd talked about that day.

For some reason, the sound of the memory had cut out... and now it was aching silence, as his memory mimed the rest.

Craig noticed the students around them had no faces anymore... a sign that this memory was disappearing just like the rest.

"But maybe... you didn't regret it." Craig admitted in a low, hurt voice. "Maybe I'd fucked things up so much that you were happy to wipe our past away..." He said.

He reached out to touch Tweek - but as the memory flickered to darkness, then back to the memory... Craig found he was the only one in the hall.

"Please stop." He sighed, sliding back down against the nearby wall to crumple on the floor. 

  
  


  
When Craig lifted his head he noticed he was in Token's house now. Another party. Only this time, he fortunately wasn't hitting on Thomas, and he and Tweek weren't separated.   
  


_They were curled up on the couch together. They were seated in the corner of one of Token's many lavish sofas; Craig in the corner with Tweek nestled right in beside him, almost right on his lap._

_"I'm... a l-little tipsy." Tweek giggled, nestling his nose and lips into the crook of Craig's neck.  
  
_

He smiled solemnly, but didn't say anything. He was too depressed.

Why bother?

This was just one torturous scene after another. He remembered this night; they'd both gotten drunk, stumbled into one of Token's guest rooms, and had sex before they passed out.

Looking over at Tweek's memory, Craig was surprised to see the 'memory' staring at him contently. "Y-You're not enjoying this." His imagination clarified.

"Can't say that I am." He muttered back, resting his head against Tweek's temple. 

The blond snuggled closer to him. Craig looked over at the memory of his lover, wrapped in his arms. Tilting his head forward, he pressed their lips together in a kiss.

Suddenly, the party went silent, and when Craig looked up - all the party guests were gone; there wasn't even any furniture in the mansion anymore, except the one couch they were sitting on. 

Letting out a sigh, Craig rested his forehead against Tweek's. "It would be _different_." He whispered the promise like a prayer. "...If we could just give it another try..."

Tweek looked up at him with his big, large eyes.

"Remember me..." The blond replied, giving Craig a sweet, hopeful smile. "T-Try your best. Maybe -nngh- we can?..." He said. 

Leaning forward, Tweek bumped his nose against in an 'eskimo peck'.

Then he was gone.

Craig could only stare down at the empty spot where Tweek had once been...  
  


He wanted to ask when this would all stop... but... Craig knew it _wouldn't._ Not until every last memory he had of Tweek was demolished.


	4. In Memory Of

  
When Craig eyes opened, he found he was in his room - lying in a bed with strewn sheets in his boxers.   
  


_He sleepily looked around for something (or someone) - before finally getting up and tossing on a black t-shirt._

_Heading out of his room and scruffing his long, dark hair, he headed downstairs; a yawn cracking through his mouth as he moved. Craig could hear the sound of small noises coming from the kitchen, and it made him smile. As he wandered in, he saw Tweek making coffee._

_The blond turned to look at the doorway anxiously, but settled down and gave a sweet smile when he noticed it was just Craig._

_Tweek looked adorable; he was just in a white t-shirt and simple coffee-mug boxers. He had on one sock that was clearly too large for his foot. "M-Morning." He said gently, a blush tainting his pale cheeks in the early morning light. "I-I didn't want to wake you, and... I -nngh- wanted to be there when you woke up, b-but I needed... coffee..." He explained nervously._

_"It's alright." Craig soothed, walking up to him and petting the back of his unruly, blond bed-head hair. "Morning." He placed a kiss on the side of Tweek's temple. The blond leaned into him a bit, before Craig moved back to his little round kitchen table, and sat down._

_Pouring two coffees, Tweek brought them over and set them on the table. "I don't drink coffee." Craig pointed out with another yawn._

_"I-I know... but you're GOING to." Tweek insisted. "I-I made this -nngh- especially for you... I p-promise you'll like it." He nudged the cup toward a sleepy Craig._

_His boyfriend looked at him skeptically, before he reluctantly took the warm cup in hand. He brought it to his lips, and took a tentative sip..._

_Surprisingly, it wasn't bad - and the expression must have shown on Craig's face, because Tweek's smile grew even more hopeful._

_"It's... pretty good." He admitted._

_Tweek smiled sheepishly. "I-I put lots of s-sugar in it for you." He admitted. "Y-You'll get more -nngh- used to it, a-and soon you won't need as much..." He explained._

_Taking another big gulp, Craig set the cup down on the table and patted his lap. Tweek made a small, anxious noise and set his own cup down, before he moved from his seat, and slid onto Craig's knee._

_"I like waking up with you." He said gently, placing a kiss on Tweek's pale neck, which was now riddled with small bite marks and hickies._

_The blond blushed and nestled closer against Craig. "W-Was this... a... one night s-stand?" He asked sadly._

_"No." Craig answered, furrowing his brow. "Why would you think that?"_

_Tweek looked down, "I-I just... n-no one has ever... -nngh- last night w-was my first... um..." He tried to explain; Craig could see him getting more and more worked up, "It's just hard to believe t-that you're not... going to..."_

_"Tweek." Craig soothed, wrapping his arms tighter around the blond. "Last night was **not** a one-night stand. It was a FIRST stand." He smiled warmly. "And there will be many more 'stands' to come." Craig hummed reassuringly as he placed a gentle kiss on Tweek's lips. "We're officially together now."_

_The small teen in his lap choked out a happy, relieved sob and threw his arms around Craig's neck in a tight embrace..._

Craig held him back as tightly as he could. "No, no no..." He mumbled aloud, tears beginning to, once more, form in his own eyes. "No, NOT this one... not this one... please not this one." He begged, knowing exactly what memory happened prior to this one...

His first time sleeping with Tweek...

  
_Craig collapsed down on the bed next to Tweek, completely out of breath, but utterly satisfied. They were both naked - lying side by side as their breathing began to regulate once more._

_"G-Gah!" Tweek exclaimed with a shudder. "I-It's -nngh- cold in here." The blond said._

_Craig looked to him with a small smirk, and grabbed the blankets that lay bunched at the end of his bed. He brought them up in a big gesture - pulling them right overhead, so he and Tweek were nestled beneath the blankets in a 'mock' fort. His lover squeaked, before shifting over closer to Craig, as they faced one another._

_The two smiled at one another warmly; Tweek wasn't even twitching as much as they lay in the afterglow of their physical connection. Craig let out a slow sigh, closing his eyes._

_But Tweek stayed awake; his large, curious hazel orbs running over Craig's face._

_"C-Craig?..." Tweek whispered meekly._

_The noriette shifted his head, but didn't open his eyes as he answered. "Mmhm?"_

_"Am I... nngh... u-ugly?" The blond asked._

_Craig opened his eyes shifting closer to Tweek; his brow furrowed and he shook his head. "No."_

_"I-I... um... I just always... t-thought..." Tweek stammered, lowering his eyes nervously as a blush crept onto his cheeks. "I-I know n-no one really likes me... nngh... I'm j-just... weird looking! I t-think everyone else is -nng- so lucky... because y-you are all so... normal..." He whispered. Craig noticed him biting his lower lip, though his eyes were still pointed down; like he was trying not to cry. "I wish I w-was like you... I w-wish I wasn't... s-so..." He stopped himself again._

_It was heartbreaking to listen to him trying to pour his heart out. Craig had always known Tweek was a walking ball of neurosis; a big imagination, too much coffee, and spooked by the craziest things. It wasn't surprising that he felt a bit isolated for most of his life. Craig could remember feeling bad for Tweek; he hated the fact that the boy's self esteem was so low... but Craig knew then and there, that he'd try to help Tweek build his confidence back up._

_Shifting over, Craig leaned down over Tweek and began to place light, tender kisses along his cheek, jaw and temple. "You're beautiful, Tweek..." He whispered against his skin. His hands came up to softly run through Tweek's wild hair as he continued to soothe him. "You're not like anyone else... and that's not a bad thing." He mumbled. To be honest, it was part of why Craig was so drawn to him. As much as HE liked things boring and simple - and found everyone else's lives mundane - Tweek had been the exception._

_"C-Craig..." Tweek trembled, closing his eyes as he leaned his head up toward Craig's affections; his arms coming to wrap around the broad waist of the guy lying on top him. "D-Don't leave me..." He begged._

_He pressed his lips to Tweek's in a deep, brief kiss, "I won't." Craig swore seriously, before he began to kiss his way down the column of the blond's throat, then back up to his jaw..._

But suddenly, Tweek's appearance seemed to turn a bit more transparent. Then, in an instant, he was completely gone, and Craig was lying on the bed alone. 

"No..." He whimpered, crawling up the bed as he clutched to the sheets desperately. " **Please** let me keep this memory..."

When Craig opened his eyes, he was standing in his empty kitchen. It was nighttime; the house was pretty quiet, except for the small sound of a running coffee maker.   
  
  


_Tweek was perched up, sitting on the counter sipping coffee sweetly as he blushed and kept his large, doe-eyes on Craig. "I-I hope this gets -nngh- easier..." He admitted shyly._

_"It will." Craig reassured him, adding a small smile. "Soon we won't need to be so secretive about everything." He shrugged. "Not that I care what people think about me, but... I want you to feel comfortable." He said, walking up to where Tweek was perched on the counter._

_The blond made an anxious noise as Craig shifted in to stand between Tweek's open legs as they dangled off the ledge. "R-Really?" Tweek asked hopefully; his eye twitching a bit as he blushed. "You won't... -nngh-... be embarrassed?"_

_"What do I need to say to prove to you that I really DO like you?" Craig asked huskily, trailing and nestling his nose along Tweek's cheek; dipping in behind his ear and into his soft, wild blond hair._

_Tweek shivered and set his coffee cup down - tentatively sliding his hands up into Craig's dark hair. His hands felt warm from the cup he'd been holding, and Craig found himself letting out a deep sigh._

_"Do you like me, Tweek?" Craig purred into his ear._

_The blond trembled and tightened his hands in Craig's hair briefly, before sliding his arms around his shoulders. "Y-You're... -nngh-... perfect..." He stammered bashfully. "Y-You're strong... and... h-handsome..." He continued nervously, biting his lower lip with a small noise as he tried to nestle his nose closer against Craig's._

_Craig smiled a bit, and lifted his hands to cup either side of Tweek's head. "Keep your mouth real still..." He instructed, whispering against the blond's lips._

_Tweek did as he was told and suddenly froze, with his lips parted slightly. Craig lightly trailed his tongue all along Tweek's lips, occasionally dipping in between the teen's open lips before continuing around; stopping to lap at his lower lip before giving it a bite. He lightly tugged and nibbled at the plump flesh._

_"Nngh!" Tweek whimpered. "C-Craig..."_

_Their lips crushed against one another. His hands held Tweek's head strongly while his tongue plunged in to explore his mouth eagerly. Tweek's arms and legs wrapped around Craig's waist and neck like he was latching on for dear life._

_Hoisting Tweek up, Craig groaned again as they began to stumble back through the kitchen - past the living room and down the hall. The blond kept his limbs tightly wrapped around Craig like some kind of koala as they made out passionately - both with the single goal in mind of getting to Craig's bedroom. As they burst into the room, Tweek made a small, desperate noise as they collapsed onto the bed..._  


  
But instead of hitting a soft mattress, Craig groaned as he smashed himself back against a set of lockers. Opening his eyes, he saw he was in their high school hallway. "Fuck!" He cursed.  
  


_Students began to file out of their classrooms as soon as the bell rung, and Craig's stormy blue eyes instantly searched for a familiar tuff of wild, blond hair. When he finally spotted Tweek, a small smirk touched the corner of his lips, before he quickly replaced it with a more stoic and bored look; the usual._

_"H-Hey Craig..." The blond greeted awkwardly, looking around them with a his usual paranoid intensity._

_He just turned, "Come on." He gruffed out impatiently, before he stuffing his hands into the pockets of his hoodie. Tweek followed behind him obediently, occasionally making a few small noises as they pushed past the students crowding the halls._

_Once they reached their lockers, Craig slowly exchanged his books; his eyes flickering over toward Tweek, who trembled as he tried to swap his own for their next class._

_As the crowded halls began to thin again, Craig looked Tweek up and down - before he reached out, and smacked Tweek's books out of his hands._

_They fell to the floor; some papers scattering around them. The blond looked up toward Craig worriedly, biting his lower lip as he shook even more. As he knelt down to pick them up, Clyde and Token walked past. "Another unexplained tantrum?" Clyde grumbled._

_Craig shot him a glare and flipped him off. He continued to watch as the students began to disappear as they hurried to their next class._

_He didn't care if they were late; that much was obvious. He waited for almost every last person to vacate the hall. And the moment they were alone, Craig grasped Tweek by his shirt and quickly hauled him to his feet - pressing him against the lockers. Tweek cried out in alarm, but Craig's lips sealing over his own silenced the noise._

_The blond couldn't help but moan as Craig's tongue dominated his mouth like he was trying to devour him whole. When they finally parted, both teens were panting heavily. "Sorry..." Craig smirked. "Making you drop your books was the only thing I could think of to give us a moment alone." He muttered against Tweek's lips as he pressed his body right against the shorter blond's._

_"Nngh!" Tweek blushed, biting his lower lip as his eyes trailed over Craig's face. "O-Oh..."_

_He tilted his head. "You didn't actually think I was bullying you, did you?" Craig frowned, a slight hint of concern tinting his otherwise monotone voice._

_"Ack! W-Well, I... nngh..." Tweek stammered, looking down. "M-Maybe for a -nngh- minute... I didn't... um..." He continued, trembling more as he clutched to the front of Craig's hoodie. He knew Tweek was always worried that he was going to suddenly 'hate' him._

_Craig looked down at him softly, before he pulled Tweek into a warm hug. He instantly burrowed his face into the crook of Craig's neck and beneath his chin. Shifting his head a bit, he rested his cheek atop Tweek's head and looked down the hall with a sigh. "We should head to class." He mumbled reluctantly. "I'll just tell the teacher you had another freak out."_

_Craig could feel Tweek's head shift in a 'nodding' motion beneath his cheek..._

"Tweek." Craig said, interrupting the brief silence when a lump began to form in his throat.

The blond nestled deeper into his arms. "Y-Yeah, C-Craig?" He asked quietly.

"...I can't stop this." He admitted; his voice sounded wrecked (even to his own ears). Like he was doing his best not to cry.

He had tried everything he could possibly think of to keep these memories... and nothing had worked. Looking down at the blond, who stared up at him with those big, beautiful hazel eyes, Craig shook his head sadly. "What do we do?" He asked.

The subconscious memory of Tweek looked down bashfully for a moment, before he raised his eyes to meet Craig's sullen ones again.

"E-Enjoy it..." Tweek whispered simply, giving Craig an encouraging, sweet smile as the memory began to disappear...

_"Nngh! C-Craig we can't! This isn't right, man! J-Jesus!" Tweek exclaimed in a whisper as they made their way through a crowd of people._

_The couple had come on their date to the local movie theatre; they were playing some double creature-feature; it had been Craig's idea to sneak in after the intermission with all the smokers._

_"Second-Acting is a subversive act." Craig mumbled with a devilish smirk as he led Tweek inside the building; they mingled with the 'smoking' crowd to avoid being checked or seen. "Ticket prices are too high for a hick-town like South Park." He growled as they headed into the movie theatre..._

Craig sighed as he clutched onto Tweek's hand.

"I'm done, Tweek." He muttered sadly. "I'm just gonna ride it out. Hiding is clearly not working." 

Tweek tilted his head and looked to Craig curiously. "...Y-Yeah?" 

"I just want to enjoy these last moments with you." He whispered, pulling the memory of Tweek close as he buried his nose into his blond hair.

Stopping at a few of the seats in the theatre, Tweek smiled and looked up at the big movie screen. "T-This was our -nngh- first date..." He recalled excitedly. 

"Do you remember what we talked about?" Craig asked; he knew it was a stupid question to ask a 'projection' of Tweek that was happening in his OWN memory... but hell, he just wanted to pretend that this Tweek was real, and that he could interact with it.

The blond furrowed his brow cutely, before nibbling his lower lip in thought. "C-Clyde... I guess?..." Tweek recalled. 

Craig nodded; he'd gone out with Clyde a few times before - but they'd ended things on bad terms.

They were still friends, but the tension was still touch and go sometimes; it just hadn't worked out... especially since Craig knew he'd always had feelings for Tweek.

"We did talk about Clyde." Craig confirmed. It felt stupid now - looking back on it - to talk about an ex-boyfriend to your NEW boyfriend? Who does that? 

Tweek nodded as they took their seats in the movie theatre. "Y-Yeah..." He blushed. "A-And I said: _are... are you sure a-about me_?" The blond said, helping to narrate the memory. "You -nngh- seem unsure."

"And I told you I was sure." Craig continued confidently, staring at Tweek longingly. 

The blond smiled. "B-But you _weren't_." He giggled, looking back to the movie screen. "...I c-could tell."

There was a brief moment of silence that fell between them as the theatre seats continued to fill up.

"I am now." Craig said finally. Tweek looked over to him. "I'm **so** sure." he whispered, continuing to stare at the memory of the blond he'd come to love so much. 

  
Hearing the theatre go silent, Craig noticed all the patrons had disappeared; it was just the two of them sitting in the empty theatre. Leaning over, he kissed Tweek sweetly on the lips...  
  
  
It was all ending so fast.

  
Blinking a few times, Craig found himself in a dark living room... HIS dark living room (to be exact). 

_He and Tweek were sitting on the couch and watching 'The Wizard of Oz' ... definitely closer than 'best friends' should probably be sitting._

_But Craig was well aware that, even during something like 'The Wizard of Oz' Tweek was prone to get scared and paranoid. True to form, the blond began to get scared as soon as the house flew up in the air. His head found Craig's shoulder soon after, and his hands clutched to his blue sweater even tighter by the time the house landed on the witch._

_Craig couldn't help himself... it was too adorable._

_"Maybe we should go out."_

_He felt Tweek shift his head away in order to look up at Craig with what he could only assume was shock._

_Craig kept his eyes on the television, trying not to regret blurting that out. He didn't know WHAT to say._

_"Nngh!" Tweek whimpered. "O-Ok..."_

_Craig looked down at his best friend - and was clearly a little taken aback by Tweek's answer. He initially thought that Tweek might just be agreeing with him because he got the impression Craig would get 'mad' at him, or something; like he was only saying 'ok' to avoid getting beaten up._

_But the gentle, hopeful look lingering in his hazel orbs reassured Craig that he understood... he **was** serious._

_Leaning his head down a bit, Craig nestled his nose into the soft blond hair beneath him. Tweek buried in closer to the taller boy as he wrapped an arm around him..._

When he looked back to the television, Craig saw the movie was gone - and instead, memories of him and Tweek were playing on the screen... flicking one by one, in and out, like some old home video. 

Craig sighed as the room flickered around him. 

  
He felt so mad; so agitated and on edge...  
  


  
_Craig was standing in the hallway - his eyes glaring at the two teens that stood in front of their lockers. His eyes were focused on the image of Christophe talking to Tweek._

_But not just talking to Tweek... HITTING on Tweek._

_His body language, and that smug smirk on his lips were all telltale signs; the blond cowered bashfully against the wall. Tweek didn't seem scared, but he was obviously entranced with whatever Christophe was saying._

_And Craig didn't like it one bit. That damn smooth Frenchman._

_"Need anything, Dickstophe?" Craig snapped as he reached his locker - choosing to position himself closely behind Tweek; his chest almost pressing against the nervous teen's back._

_The Merc stared over and across the shorter blond's head at Craig as his cocky smile faded a bit. "Weeth you? ... Nozhing." Christophe shrugged casually, looking back down to Tweek. "I weel see you een last period, oui?" He purred - giving Craig another bemused glance before he continued walking down the rest of the hallway._

_"You shouldn't talk to him." Craig growled in a low voice. "He's an asshole, and you can't trust him."_

_The blond winced; a curious expression crossing his face as he looked down to the ground. "Nngh... t-that's the same thing Kyle and S-Stan said about -nngh- you."_

_Craig stiffened as he stared into his locker. His hand clutched tighter around the book he was holding, before he sighed and stuffed it into his bag. "Those guys are assholes, too." He grit out between clenched teeth. "Let's go." He muttered, gesturing with his head for Tweek to follow._

_As they began to head down the still crowded hallways, Craig glanced up and saw Christophe standing against his own locker now - watching as Craig and Tweek approached._

_Clenching his teeth again, Craig grasped the sleeve of Tweek's shirt firmly, and tugged him over onto the other side - successfully placing himself between Tweek and Christophe. As they started to pass him, the raven-haired teen shifted over so he was shoulder to shoulder against the blond. He saw Christophe smirk knowingly, but he (thankfully) made no comment._

_"Nngh!" The small sound drew Craig's attention back down to Tweek; the blond was blushing uncontrollably and looked like he even had a small, sheepish smile on his lips._

Craig sighed.

_Looking up - Craig saw Tweek timidly enter his room. It was nighttime now; he'd been pacing around like some kind of caged animal for hours, possibly. He hadn't really been paying attention to the time._

_"What the fuck do you want?" He snapped._

_The blond shrunk back a bit. "I-I... um..." He stammered awkwardly. "Y-Your mom -nngh- phoned m-my mom," Tweek began, looking to the tall teen sadly. "I-I... know what happened."_

_Craig snarled and continued to move around his room in an agitated fashion._

_"Yeah, well I didn't ASK you to come here." Craig hissed._

_Tweek stared up at him. "N-No, but... nngh... y-your mom did. M-My mom is downstairs -ack- right NOW... t-trying to comfort your mom..."_

_"Go HOME, Tweek." He yelled angrily, sending a deadly stare in Tweek's direction. He couldn't do this right now._

_He'd just found out from his mother that his dad had run out on them... for good._

_His relationship with his father had NEVER been a great one; and as much as Craig tried to believe he hated his old man... all he'd ever wanted was his approval._

_But he'd never gotten it. And now, he'd never be able to prove to any male figure in his life that he was strong, or capable. That he could be successful. Needless to say, he was more than upset - not just with his father, but also with himself. And Craig was never comfortable dealing with his emotions. He hated emotions, most of the time; they could make you feel so raw and vulnerable._

_"C-Craig..." Tweek said gently, taking a tentative step toward him. "It's... nngh... o-ok if you're sad."_

_He whipped around to glare at the blond. "Piss. Off." He said, separating each word with a pointed, sharp tone._

_But Tweek didn't listen. Instead, he took another step and gently touched Craig's arm._

_Not wanting to show ANY kind of weakness (in front of anyone), the tall teen roughly shoved Tweek back, resulting in the blond to smack against his bedroom door with a whimper._

_"Get LOST, Tweek!" He yelled, his voice only getting angrier. "Get out, and FUCK OFF." Craig growled and kept his eyes down as he paced his small room, clearly getting more agitated. What was worse is that he could feel tears stinging his eyes._

_He didn't want to cry in front of Tweek, he **couldn't**. _

_Only pussies cried when their fathers ditched out._

_And Craig Tucker was anything BUT a pussy._

_Keeping his back to Tweek, Craig looked out his window - feeling the tears beginning to run down his cheeks regardless. He took in an angry, broken breath and grit his teeth together. He would hold himself together; he HAD to... at least... that was the plan._

_But as soon as he felt the gentle, thin arms of Tweek wrap around his waist in a comforting gesture... Craig fell apart._

_A sob escaped from the back of his throat as he shut his eyes tightly and broke down. Falling down on - he felt Tweek's arms wrap even tighter around him, holding Craig back against his chest as he sat between his slender legs._

_It was so strange._

_Normally, Craig would be the one to hold TWEEK in such a position... but their roles were reversed. Now, Craig was the one in need of comfort, in need of strength... and of ALL people - it was Tweek Tweak who was there to give it to him._

_Not wanting the blond to ACTUALLY see him crying, Craig kept his face buried into his arms, resting them on his bent knees._

_Tweek held onto him, and rested his head on the curve of Craig's back - simply letting the teen know he was there, and content to hold him until he was finished letting out years of pent up anger, resentment, and disappointment with the man who'd finally abandoned him for good..._

"This... was when I knew..." Craig muttered to himself, knowing the memory had already begun to flicker. "This was the moment I knew I loved you... I knew I needed you. Fucking **more** than you'd ever need me." He whispered.

  
Craig looked around him curiously to see that for once - Tweek wasn't there. He was standing outside Clyde's house. 

_"It's over." He mumbled, taking out a cigarette._

_The brunette glared at him. "You really ARE an asshole." He sneered, slamming the door. "Token's a way better friend than you EVER were, and if Tweek's smart, he'll stay away from you!"_

_Clyde's last comment was shouted through the door - but it fell on deaf ears. Craig had already begun to make his way back down the driveway._

It was kind of a low move, but hell, what was he supposed to do? He didn't want to keep dating Clyde; he'd realized a while ago that it was Tweek that he liked hanging out with. It was Tweek that he liked talking to, and looking out for. And it was Tweek that slipped into his mind more often than not...

  
_They were walking side by side._

_The sky was dull, overcast and gray - it was snowing._

_Craig moved calmly; his hands stuffed into the pockets of his dark blue, pea coat as they continued slowly down the sidewalk toward his house. It was the same mundane trek that they made everyday to-and-from South Park High._

_Tweek - however - was moving a bit more erratically; he would twitch... maybe scurry ahead a few paces in front of Craig - like he was checking the area for spies or gnomes._

_Occasionally, he'd switch positions from walking on Craig's right side, to walking on his left. He would even sometimes stop and try to avoid the large, falling snowflakes... before switching his tactic, and instead, trying to catch them on his tongue._

_He was like a hyperactive puppy... and it was hard for Craig to keep his eyes off him._  
  
  


He was so full of life - especially compared to Craig, who just walked in a straight line; simple and dull, metaphorically and literally. But his eyes were almost constantly glued onto Tweek's every move.

He couldn't help watching him; he couldn't help that the blond spaz fascinated and entranced him all at once. 

He loved him. It was simple.

_"See you, Thomas." Craig nodded._

_Thomas gave him a bashful smile and a nod before continuing down the hall. Shutting his locker and clicking the lock shut, Craig checked his cell phone and saw he had a text message from Clyde._

_Rolling his eyes a bit, he shoved the phone back into his pocket, and hurried toward the front doors. He'd been ignoring Clyde for a while now; he'd kind of hoped the boy would get the HINT that their brief relationship (if you could even call it that) was fizzling. It was over, and he knew it._

_Heading out the front doors, his brow immediately furrowed in confusion when he didn't see Tweek there, waiting for him like he normally did._

_It began to snow as Craig started to walk - his eyes on constant alert for the familiar blond. Finally, he spotted him heading down the street. Jogging up toward him, Craig reached out and clasped Tweek's shoulder, causing the blond to jump._

_"You didn't wait for me." he frowned; his voice straight-edged as usual._

_Tweek shot him the best glare he could muster (which was more cute than it was threatening), before he looked down at the ground and continued to walk. "I-I wasn't going to -nngh- interrupt your t-time with -ack- T-Thomas," The blond stammered._

_Craig continued to follow Tweek, walking right alongside him._

_"Tweek... Thomas and I are just friends."._

_The blond flinched and trembled, but didn't look at Craig. Realizing instantly that Tweek's feelings were hurt (or bordering on being hurt) - Craig grasped the shorter boy's arm and stopped him._

_"Tweek?" Craig asked._

_His large hazel orbs shut tightly as he clenched his fists, "I-I don't LIKE it... whenyouhangoutwithThomas." He blurted out quickly. "I-I don't like him, and-and T-Thomas is cooler than me, and... and people LIKE him more! I know t-they do, and -nngh- I... don'twanttolooseyoutohim." Tweek stammered sadly. "H-He's so... nngh... and... I'm... just..." The blond choked out awkwardly._

_When he felt Craig's hand slip into his own, Tweek looked up to the taller teen with a startled, confused expression._

_"Ok." Craig said simply._

_Tweek winced. "...O-Ok?"_

_"Ok." He repeated with a shrug. "I won't hang around Thomas anymore." Turning, he began to walk back down the street, still holding Tweek's hand. "If it bothers you **that** much... then I won't do it."_

_The blond stared at him, completely shocked. "B-But... I'm... being -nngh- unreasonable." He admitted sheepishly, suddenly feeling bad._

_"I get it." Craig answered, giving the blond teen's hand a gentle squeeze._

_He felt Tweek speed up a bit so they were walking side-by-side, and he felt the thin frame of the blond lean against him as they walked..._

Looking beside him, Craig's eyes ran over the memory of Tweek.

This certainly wasn't getting easier.

_Flicking his cigarette butt away, Craig stuffed his hands into the pockets of his blue hoodie as he began to walk back around the side of the school._

_Classes had just started and he was already sick of it. High school was no different from elementary school; both were a stupid, pointless waste of time - filled with dumb dramatic assholes._

_Rounding the corner, he saw other students beginning to file toward the building; namely one in particular - Tweek Tweak._

_Craig's body relaxed a bit when he saw the blond, feeling a bit more at ease knowing he'd at LEAST get to spend the rest of the day with another social outcast... someone who disliked people and crowds almost as much as Craig did._

_"Move it, fuckwad!" Cartman snapped as he came barreling up toward Tweek. Craig watched as the huskier teen stuck his foot out as he shoved Tweek forward - instantly sending the twitching, blond teen face down onto the pavement. Craig could see from here the hurt wince on Tweek's face he scraped his hands onto the ground._

_In zero seconds flat, Craig was running full speed toward Cartman - tackling him onto the ground; causing the beefy teen to yell in a slightly shrill voice._

_The noirette grabbed him by the front of the coat, and delivered a few solid punches to his cheek. "Don't touch him again." he snarled, slamming another fist against Cartman's face. The teen's nose began to bleed as he groggily let out a string of curses._

_Standing up, Craig wrapped an arm around Tweek's small shoulders and led him inside. He got a few predictable stares from some fellow classmates, all giving the duo a wide berth... but their stares disappeared when Craig Tucker shot them all a warning look. In fact, they scattered like roaches._

_"I'm walking you to-and-from school now." He said matter-of-factly as they moved through the halls; like Tweek had no say in the matter._

_Craig only felt a small wave of relief, knowing he wouldn't have to justify the 'new demand' as soon as he heard Tweek answer: "Nngh! O-Ok... t-thanks..."_  


_Craig looked around him curiously; he was sitting outside of the school, on a set of long, cement stairs. There were tons of other teens scattered around the football field in the distance, as well as a few mingling around. Thankfully, none near him..._

"Orientation." He said aloud to himself, recognizing their first day of high school.

Oddly enough, he wasn't appearing any 'younger' in his memories. He was still his older 22-year-old self... but he was reliving these youthful memories.

His eyes immediately searched for one person in particular... and soon enough, he saw him; a wild mop of blond hair, a fidgeting, thin body and odd gestures.

He was talking to Clyde and Token. "I remember seeing you in the distance... I could only see the back of your head, but I knew it was you immediately." He continued to reminisce to himself. "I wanted to go speak to you, but you were talking with Clyde, and I was hoping to avoid him."

_"H-Hey C-Craig." Tweek's timid voice greeted._

The blond was suddenly right beside Craig; like his memory had just skipped a beat. 

_"Hey." He greeted in his usual, bored tone._  
  
_Tweek flinched, looking around from their semi-high perched seat on the stairs. "I-I saw you -nngh- sitting here... and... I -ack- just c-came to get away." He stammered. "I-I hate these things, man!" The blond said with an angry breath._

_"Nngh!" A small noise from Tweek got Craig's attention, and he noticed the blond was staring at a small bag of Honey Nut Cheerios that Craig'd brought from home after skipping breakfast. It was only about 10am, so he'd been sitting on the stairs and occasionally nibbling on them while keeping out of sight. "C-Can I... borrow a C-Cherrio?" Tweek asked sweetly, nibbling on his lower lip as his trembling hand reached out, and plucked the back from Craig's lap._

Craig watched, shaking his head. "...And then you just TOOK it." He narrated. "Without waiting for an answer."

As he watched Tweek begin to nibble on the Cherrios cutely, he smiled and chuckled. "It was so intimate." he recalled gently as his eyes ran over Tweek's features. "...like we were already together."

_"How's your coffee holding out?" Craig asked dully._

_Tweek flinched, stopping his Cherrio intake as he clutched his thermos. "E-Empty..." He lamented. "I-I don't know when I'll get it FILLED again, man! ...C-Christ, what if I don't have time? Whatiftheydon'tletme?" He stammered. "It's so f-fucking cold -nngh- out here... I... um... nngh!"_

_Flicking his eyes down to look at Tweek out of the corner of his eye - he gradually lifted his arm and wrapped it around Tweek's shoulders._

_The spastic teen seemed a bit surprised at the action, but didn't hesitate to nestle down into the warmth Craig's body was soon providing. "T-Thanks C-Craig..." Tweek muttered, small hands clutching the bottom of Craig's drawstrings as he began to rub them anxiously (and more absentmindedly) between his fingers..._

"I remember being drawn to you, even then." Craig mumbled to himself. "I tried to act distant... I tried to make it seem like I didn't care; we were just friends, but... I knew exactly what I was doing. And I didn't really care that I was dating Clyde." He remembered. "I liked protecting you and holding you. And any opportunity I got, I took."  
  


Looking back down at his side, he saw the memory of Tweek staring up at him with those gentle, hazel colored doe-eyes. "T-This is it, Craig." The memory told him. "It's g-gonna be -nngh- gone soon."

"I know." Craig whispered back to him sadly as he looked out at the orientation happening further off.

Tweek bit his lower lip, clutching himself closer beneath Craig's arm. "W-What do we do?" He asked anxiously.

Craig looked back down at Tweek sadly; recalling the words that a 'previous' memory had already suggested:

"Enjoy it." He admitted with a slight shrug, as his nose and lips gently nestled against Tweek's smooth forehead...

_The kids were enjoying some cake in Stan Marsh's backyard. Randy had decided to invite all the parents and kids from his son's graduating elementary class to a party at their place. The boys would be going to high-school in September._

_It was a warm, early August evening and this was one of the last gatherings of the summer. Craig hadn't really wanted to go, but his mother and father basically forced him under the threat of going WITH him to buy new clothes for school if he didn't behave and show up._

_So he'd come - and was (at least) rather successful in spending most of that time alone, off to the side._

_"Gah!" The familiar voice brought Craig out of his bored thoughts, and his eyes lifted to fall on Tweek Tweak approaching him. The barest, hint of a smile tugged at the corner of his lips, but it didn't last long._

_"C-Craig!" Tweek exclaimed in relief. "I-I -ack- didn't think y-you'd come!" The blond was blushing, but in all fairness, looked kind of relieved - even HAPPY to see Craig._

_Maybe this stupid party wouldn't be so bad._

_Before he could open his mouth to try and convince Tweek to skip out with him somewhere, another voice spoke up. "Craig... I need to ask you something."_

_Turning, he and the blond came face to face with Clyde - who had suddenly joined them. "Nngh! I-I'll... go." Tweek offered awkwardly._

_"No. It's ok. You'll find out evetually, anyway." Clyde said, not even bothering to look at Tweek. It was actually making Craig a bit uncomfortable; he had a sinking feeling turning in his stomach. "Craig... will..." Clyde stopped himself, letting out a sigh. "Will you go out with me?" He asked._

_Craig froze._

_He was completely off guard, and couldn't really fathom why Clyde was asking him out. Glancing quickly over to the small blond, he saw Tweek's mouth hanging open in complete shock. He wasn't even twitching._

_"U-Uh..." Craig paused, his voice low. Tentatively looking back to Clyde, he saw a great deal of excitement and hope swirling around in his brown eyes. "I...guess?" he finally answered._

_The smile on Clyde's face only got bigger. Craig glanced away, suddenly feeling angry with himself for saying 'yes'. They were friends, but he really had little interest in dating the brunette._

_Craig silently blamed Kyle and Stan; those two homos decided to start dating over the summer, and as a result, other 'best friends' in South Park suddenly began to realize they had "feelings" for one another._

_Clyde just got on the wagon, apparently._

_"Great." He blushed, slipping his hand into Craig's. "Come on. Let's ditch." he grinned, tugging Craig along with him._

Craig followed, but was unable to pass Tweek without looking at him again. He looked so sad; kind of confused and disappointed... it broke his heart.

He saw the other partygoers flicker in and out of focus, before the memory completely shattered out of his mind 

_"Happy Fourteenth Birthday!" Everyone clapped._

_Craig sat uncomfortably on his living room floor, with a few of his friends scattered around in random places. He was currently making his way through some presents._

_Not everyone was watching, thank god. Some of his friends were more interesting in talking, or food - which actually allowed Craig to get through them faster._

_He hated parties, but his mother had insisted he have one to socialize a bit more. But when Craig picked up one particular, poorly wrapped present, he heard an anxious noise across from him._

_Looking up, his cold eyes landed on a jittering, flushing Tweek Tweak. "T-That's... um... from me?" He said awkwardly._

_He paused for only a second, before he opened the present and saw it was just a picture frame; inside, there was a photo of him and Tweek when they were in kindergarten._

_He could tell that the photo originally had a few of their friends in it as well... but Tweek had cropped them out, and zoomed in on him and Craig, who were standing side by side at the time._

_"Lame." He heard Clyde laugh from beside him._

_Tweek looked down sadly. "It's not your fault, Tweek. No one else is going to come close to getting him as awesome a present as I did." He patted Craig on the back in a friendly gesture. "I got him a new GameSphere game." He gloated._

_Setting the frame aside calmly, Craig just returned to opening his other presents..._

As he continued to watch this memory unfold (this time, as an outside observer) - he felt his heart going out to the young blond.

He still had that picture.

Well, 'HAD' being the operative word, since he'd tossed it in with all his other mementos that reminded him of Tweek when he'd begun this stupid procedure. 

_The party continued on, and many of his friends moved onto videogames, more food and chatting. Craig, however, slipped over to his stairwell where he saw Tweek sitting._

_Grabbing his arm, he hoisted the blond up the stairs and out of sight._

_"G-Gah! C-Craig I'm sorry!" Tweek begged. "I-I couldn't afford anything else, and-and the LAST time I was in your room, --ack, you didn't have -nngh- any pictures so... so... Ijustthought..." He continued to ramble, but was silenced as the door shut behind them._

_As the room fell into a brief silence, Tweek watched as Craig looked around his room with a careful, scrutinizing gaze. "Where should we put it?" He muttered._

_"Nngh!" Tweek winced, looking around in confusion. "W-Where should we -ack- put w-what?"_

_Craig looked back over to him. "Your picture." He clarified with a small smile. "...Where should we put it?"_

He watched Tweek's large eyes shift down to his hands; Craig had been holding the picture frame when they'd come upstairs, and the blond had been too worked up to notice.

Craig couldn't help but smile fondly as he saw Tweek's cheeks turn pink, and a coy grin grace his lips.

_"Tweek, go to sleep." Craig groaned as he shifted in his sleeping bag on Tweek's floor._

_Initially the blond had offered Craig this bed as the guest - but once the idea of 'monsters under the bed' was raised, Tweek chickened out and begged to sleep in his own bed._

_Craig agreed, hoping that would be enough to soothe the teen and get him to sleep._

_Unfortunately, Tweek's anxious noises didn't stop._

_"I-I can't..." Tweek shuddered, looking around the room with wide-eyed paranoia. "T-There are... nngh... gnomes... they'll be c-coming." He continued. "A-And what if YOU get snatched? I-I can't handle that!"_

_Craig sighed and sat up in his sleeping bag. He looked around and quirked a brow. "I don't see anything." He said in a slightly nasally tone._

_"O-Oh... well... nngh..." The blond blushed as his lower lip trembled. "N-Nevermind." He whispered._

_Craig could hear Tweek holding back his pathetic mutterings. So with a sigh, he stood up and crawled onto Tweek's bed. Sliding beneath the covers with the other boy, Craig laid down beside him. "If I block incoming attacks, will please you GO to SLEEP?" He asked._

_"Nngh... y-yes!..." The blond whimpered, instantly snuggling right up against Craig and burrowing his face into his neck._

_Craig felt his breath hitch in his throat, and he couldn't help but tense a bit at the open, affectionate contact._

_It didn't take long for his own cheeks to flush as Tweek nestled his nose into the warmth of his throat._

_What the hell was wrong with him? Shouldn't this feel more uncomfortable... and not so... natural? Unable to stop his heart from swelling toward the frightened blond, Craig lifted his arms and wrapped them around Tweek, clearing his throat as he did so._

_He heard Tweek release a deep breath, like he was finally ready to go to sleep._

_But Craig now found himself wide-awake; enjoying the comforting and familiar scent wafting up from Tweek's wild blond hair..._

It was a bittersweet moment... this would be the last time Craig would ever hold Tweek so close; so intimately.

This was their first experience with one another; demonstrating that trust and growing comfort between them.

"Tweek." Craig whispered, closing his eyes as he squeezed the small blond closer. "I don't want to forget you."

_"Don't cry." A young Craig said dully to the weeping blond._

_They were sitting in the school playground on the basketball court. Tweek had just gotten picked on by Cartman and scraped his knee. Craig had wandered by after having detention, and spotted the small boy crying._

_Tweek sniffed in a few times as Craig helped to stick a Red-Racer band-aid across his knee. "You always carry Band-Aids?" he asked._

_His classmate nodded, "Nngh! Y-Yeah... I... always hurt m-myself." He trailed off, rubbing his eyes with the back of his fist._

_The two boys stood up. Craig looked over the trembling blond boy with some pity, but drew his eyes down to the ground. He wasn't really one for 'friendships'._

_He had friends, sure, but he liked being alone._

_"I... gotta go." Craig said, stuffing his hands into his pockets and continuing to walk._

_He heard some frantic footsteps following behind him. "Nngh! C-Craig?" He asked tentatively._

_"Hmm?" he hummed, continuing to walk as Tweek followed._

_The blond tugged anxiously on the bottom of his shirt. "I-I know we f-fought and -nngh- everything, b-but... I don't hate you, andIwaswonderingifyoucouldjustwalkmehome?" He let out in one breath. He twitched a few times and blushed again. "We -ack- have to g-go the same way... anyway?..." Tweek sheepishly pointed out._

_Craig just shrugged, but didn't argue with the blond's request._

_It was kind of strange; normally, he would have flipped anyone else off. But he just didn't feel the need to do it to Tweek. Maybe because the blond already seemed too terrified, and there was no need to make the situation any more of a hassle._

_When they reached Tweek's house, Craig stopped in front of it and looked back to him. "There." He shrugged._

_But to his surprise, the small blond looked up at him and blushed. "T-Thank you." He whispered sweetly with a rare smile, before quickly disappearing up his walkway and into his house._

Craig didn't move; he stood there - now as his 22-year old self - and stared at Tweek's house.

This was the last time he'd ever see it... this was the LAST memory he had of Tweek before the fight. These were the origins of their time together, and Craig already found tears streaming down his face as he stared blankly at the house; the house he'd spent so much time in.

  
  


  
_"These Pioneer Village workers are really committed to their job." Craig mumbled calmly as he knelt on the ground with his hands tied behind his back._

_Their entire class was taken hostage during some lame field trip._

_He'd reluctantly agreed to be partners with Kenny, who'd gotten to him before he could ask Tweek. He couldn't say no, and he'd been too nervous to ask the blond himself. He was always so nervous; they'd fought about a year ago, true, but Craig didn't really have any hard feelings, since he'd found out that it was all Stan's group._

_"I won't kill you if you don't tell me," The terrorist threatened. "I'll kill one of THEM!"_

_Craig's attention was pulled back to the situation at hand as the terrorist came toward them. "Not me! Not me, not me not me!" Garrison begged pathetically._

_But Craig couldn't help but tense as the terrorist walked toward where Tweek was kneeling. His blue-gray eyes widened, and he was almost ready to jump up and volunteer himself in order to spare the blond such a horrific experience._

_But thankfully, the douchebag picked Kenny instead. Craig relaxed. Whatever. That kid lived through everything._  
  
  


_His memory flickered, and suddenly Stan Marsh was trying to distract the terrorists. Always the fuckin' hero._

_Suddenly, there was gunfire and everyone was running. The cops had somehow gotten in, and it was everyone for themselves._

_Craig ran with the rest of his class, occasionally glancing back to see where Tweek was. Unfortunately, he'd lost sight of him..._

_Thankfully, once they'd all gathered in the parking lot for a headcount, Craig spotted the trembling fourth grader. Walking over to him, Craig stood beside Tweek - slightly behind Garrison, who was talking to a police officer. "You ok?" He asked quietly._

_"Nngh! I-I think so..." The blond blushed._

Craig stared at his young, third grade self as he and Tweek fought on the playground.

_Their friends and other students cheering and watching them in a circle. It was a stupid fight, looking back on it. He felt justified in the fact that he'd come to hate Stan, Kyle, Cartman and Kenny so much. They had been manipulating masterminds behind the reason he'd fought Tweek._

_Turned out, what they said had been a lie... but... in a way, it brought Craig and Tweek together._

_He'd seen evidence of that over the past few memories._

"T-That was brutal." Tweek's voice said.  
  


Looking beside him, Craig's eyes longingly trailed over the projected-memory of his blond, 21-year old boyfriend who stood beside him. Also, apparently, watching the fight.   
  


Soon, the sound of cheering and yelling students was silenced; the memory muted as it began to crumble and erase.  
  


His last memory of Tweek.  
  


"I-I wish.... I hadn't erased you." Tweek began. "...I wish... y-y-you hadn't erased me." The blond projection lamented.  
  


Craig sighed, "I wish I hadn't, too." He agreed. "NOW I wish I hadn't." he began to pace anxiously in the fading memory; the playground starting to warp into odd shapes as the sky darkened overhead. "I wish I hadn't done a LOT of things. I wish--..."  
  


Pausing, he tried to swallow the lump in his throat down as he looked back up into Tweek's eyes and nodded. "I wish I hadn't erased you. I do."  
  


"I-I still don't... understand why... it didn't w-work." The blond continued sadly - it was cruel that his own mind was taunting him with this 'interactive' projection of Tweek.  
  


He ran an agitated hand through his long, black hair. "I don't know! I felt like a scared little kid, I was like... --it was above my head. I don't know." Craig trailed off uncomfortably.   
  


"Y-You were scared?"  
  


Craig looked up, but Tweek was gone... only his voice and spiritual presence remained in the flickering, empty playground of his memory. "Yeah." He scoffed, keeping his eyes on the ground. "I thought you knew that about me." Craig muttered beneath his breath.   
  


"C-Craig?"  
  


The voice sounded closer again - and when he turned, he saw Tweek standing in front of him.

  
The environment around them blurry and shifting out of focus; "Come and... make up a g-goodbye, at least." The blond encouraged gently. "L-Let's pretend... nngh... we had one."  
  


Craig could only stare at him with such hurt, such longing.

  
Slowly, he closed the distance between them - falling onto his knees right in front of Tweek's projection; wrapping his arms around his boyfriend's waist. He sighed as he felt gentle hands threading comfortingly into his hair, before Tweek too, got onto his knees and knelt before him.  
  


"B-Bye Craig." The blond smiled gently.  
  


He closed his eyes and allowed the tears welling in his own gray-blue orbs to fall for the last time. "...I love you." Craig broke, clutching to Tweek even tighter as he knelt before him.  
  


Tweek hugged him back; the two stayed kneeling, clutching to one another as everything around them in Craig's mind continued to dissolve...

\- - - - - -

Craig opened his eyes.

Immediately noticing the time on the clock, he groaned and reluctantly slid out of bed. He yawned about three times between slipping on his jeans, a black t-shirt, his blue hoodie and his chullo - before he grabbed his knapsack to slung it over his shoulder on his way out of his room.

He headed into the kitchen of his quiet apartment, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. Fuck. He already had a bit of a headache. He debated staying home and ditching his lectures for the morning, but considered that the fresh air might do him some good.

Eventually, Craig left his apartment and emerged into the bitter cold, early-morning South Park air to catch the bus to campus.

Normally he might've walked, but with the ache behind his eyes, he wasn't in the mood. He glanced back at his apartment building, once more wondering if he should just ditch. But for some reason, Craig had a sinking feeling that staying home wouldn't make him feel any better.

He couldn't explain it. He just felt less energetic today; more lethargic and anti-social than he had in a while. _Empty, almost._

When he reached the bus stop, Craig began to play with his iphone, ignoring the distressing sounds coming from some tweaked out blond who was standing further off.

He glanced at him briefly, to see young man sucking back coffee like it was going out of style. He was dressed in layers, looked to be about Craig's age, and had a weather-worn messenger bag slung across his body.

 _'They let anyone into this stupid college'_... Craig's grumbled inside his head. He really wasn't in the mood for South Park's townie weirdos today. 

Damn, he really should have stayed home and nursed this headache away. 

As music began to flood his earphones, Craig couldn't help but notice the blond (who, consequently, really did look like some kind of drug addict) was now talking anxiously with Stan and Kyle, who'd shown up at the public bus stop. 

God, he hated those dickwads. 

But that just meant that weird-looking blond was probably friends with them, which, by default, made him a dickwad too.  
  


Stuffing his hands back into his pockets, Craig lamented not having time for a smoke as the bus arrived. He waited for everyone else to file on, before he went after. Turns out, _that_ was a setback, because the bus was fuller than usual today; it was cold out, so most students had decided to get the bus. Paired with some of the usual adult-work commuters, it was packed.

"Fuck." Craig mumbled unhappily to himself.

He saw one seat open, and it happened to be right beside that twitching, 'freaked-out' looking blond.

"Perfect..." He groaned to himself as he reluctantly headed over to the vacant seat. 

Plopping down in it, and sitting as far away as possible from the blond teen beside him - Craig just let out another irritated sigh as said-blond began making anxious noises and twitching more rapidly.

Turning up the music volume on his iphone, Craig drowned out his noises and went back to the quiet world inside his head. 

He probably should have just stayed home today...


	5. Strings That Tie To You

  
Craig felt awful the whole day. He just didn't feel like himself, and as crazy as it sounded... it almost seemed like he was missing something.

But what, he didn't have a fucking clue. To be honest, he was having trouble remembering the past few days clearly; they all seemed to blur together in one, non-descriptive event.

Despite his concern for his lack of a cohesive memory, Craig chalked it up to boredom. Maybe his life had become that mundane, that it wasn't worth paying attention to anymore. 

This town was fucked anyway; why bother paying attention?

Once he graduated college, he'd get out of here once and for all.

However... he couldn't help but notice that twitching blond he'd seen at the bus stop was turning up everywhere he went.

Craig didn't know HOW he could have ever missed the awkward looking guy before. But he didn't recognize him. He should have been able to spot someone like that before now, right?

His little noises and mutterings were even more difficult to ignore, which unfortunately, Craig found out the hard way. The blond was sitting beside him in a few of his lecture classes... _what the hell?_

And oddly enough, the blond seemed just as confused and misplaced by Craig's moody presence beside him; the words, "Pressure" and "Kill" were frequently uttered.

Why were no other seats ever available? And why didn't he REMEMBER this kid if they were in some of the same courses? The peer numbers weren't that big. Had he really been so consumed in his own world to notice?

It was a relief to finally get off of campus and away from it all. 

When he returned back to his apartment, he ate dinner - played a few video games - and went to bed early. This whole day had been a weird, out of body experience. 

Lying down on his mattress, Craig propped his arms behind his head as he tried to relax.

Maybe he could just sleep this bizarre feeling off.

  
_He was walking down one of the many hallways in his old high school._

_Craig kept turning corners... walking down corridors... turning more corners... but he never arrived anywhere._

_The school seemed to be just an endless series of twists, turns, hallways, and lockers._

_He quickly found himself becoming more and more agitated with each passing moment when he realized he might not be able to get out of here._

_Until he turned a corner, and saw someone standing at the other end._

_It was that twitchy blond he'd seen throughout the day. And while he figured his initial reaction might be one of annoyance or even bewilderment... he found himself smiling..._

_The blond smiled back at him._

_Craig's dream seemed to flicker, and in the next second, he found himself moving quickly down the hall toward that guy. The blond, in turn, was moving just as quickly toward him._

_When they reached one another, Craig willingly embraced him and held him close; the shorter blond jumped up a bit; wrapping his legs around Craig's waist as they clutched to one another._

_For some reason... he felt... relief._

_He felt happy. Complete Whole again. He felt better in this dream than he had all day._

_Craig felt the blond ease away from him a bit - and their eyes met._

_Leaning in, the twitching, trembling blond nestled their noses together in an oddly familiar gesture. Craig couldn't help but release a slow, deep breath._

_Their eyes drifted up to meet once more, and they leaned into one another. He could feel the blond's warm breath on his lips as he trembled..._  
  


Craig bolted out of his sleep instantly; his eyes panicked, his breathing shallow.

_...What the fuck was that?!_

Getting out of bed, he quickly disappeared down the hall and into the bathroom. He turned the sink tap on cold and splashed some water on his face a couple of times, before drying off and heading back to his room.

Seriously - what the hell was that all about? Was he going to start dreaming about every freak that ruined his day? 

It was just a coincidence; that was all.

It meant nothing. Weird dreams were just the result of a weird fucking day.

  
"C-Clyde? Um... c-can I talk to you?" Tweek asked. 

The brunette shrugged, trying to keep some of his books from blowing too much in the wind. "Sure, what's up?" 

They were sitting at one of the many outdoor tables in the quad, both in between courses with some free time.

"U-Uh... I'm... _nngh_... h-having strange dreams," The blond admitted sheepishly tugging on his shirt. "T-There's this guy in my - _nngh_ \- classes, and... I can't s-stop thinkingabouthim!" He rambled quickly. "I-I don't know what to DO! Jesus, man! I-I don't even know him!"

Clyde quirked a brow, "Dude chill. I'm sure its just coincidence." 

"B-But what if it's not!?" Tweek stammered nervously. "I-I've been feeling so WEIRD! _Nngh!_ ...M-More... than usual," He corrected with a small blush. "I-I need help! I c-can't think straight, m-my skin is coming off! Nothing makes sense!"

His friend couldn't help but laugh a bit. "Ok, ok, easy spaz." He smiled. "We definitely don't want your 'skin' coming off. Point this guy out to me." He suggested, "Being the super-stud of the college, I pretty much know everyone."

"Super stud?" Token interrupted; he'd been sitting on the other side of the table quietly up until this point. "Please." He smirked.

Clyde narrowed his eyes.

Tweek was really hoping that he'd be able to clear these odd experiences up. He hadn't been feeling like his usual self for the past few weeks... and he had NO clue why.

Sure, Tweek was used to being paranoid and dependent on coffee - but this was another feeling entirely.

He felt anxious... like he was missing something, or had lost something. 

It wasn't a GOOD feeling to say the least.

"Do you see him anywhere out here?" Clyde asked, "Or should we go on walk and take a look around?"

Tweek trembled and looked around; one of his hands tugging on his jagged blond air absently.

One of the lecture halls was letting out, as multiple students began to exit the building across the quad. There were little groups of students here and there, some just passing by too...

He was about to suggest maybe they take a walk around until he caught sight of the guy he'd recently been dreaming about. " _Nngh!_ T-That's him!" He squeaked, pointing him out to Clyde.

While he was a stranger to Tweek, Clyde (of course) immediately recognized his mutual friend.

Craig.

He was leaving the building across the quad alongside Kenny McCormick, looking bored and pissed off, as usual.

"Uh..." Clyde cleared his throat awkwardly. "That's--... he's not... really someone I'd put you with, Tweek." He began sadly. "You should drop it."

The blond looked up to Clyde sheepishly, "B-But... you - _nngh_ \- know him?!" He asked.

"Yeah." Clyde answered quickly. "And that's why I think you should just keep your distance. His name's Craig, and he's kind of an asshole. He doesn't really get along with anyone, except for me, Token, Kevin and Kenny."

Tweek tilted his head, " _Nngh_... b-but... if you're friends... h-how come I've never met him?" He asked curiously.

Clyde cursed himself for opening his big mouth.

They'd all gotten telegrams from Mephesto's weird company when Tweek had gone under and erased Craig from his memory. It had been CLYDE'S fault that Craig initially saw said-telegram, and then went under the procedure to erase Tweek. Which meant several of them all got yet another telegram, this time insisting that they not mention anything about Tweek to Craig.

It was fucked up.

And while both had gotten what they wanted - it was their friends who were now trying to put the pieces back together. How the hell was he supposed to explain why Tweek had never met Craig before? Or vice versa? Especially when they were all friends.

"Uh..." Clyde coughed a bit, clearly uncomfortable. "I told you. He doesn't really get along with anyone." Tweek nodded, and seemed to accept that answer as they began to gather their belongings up from the table. "Trust me... if you're having dreams, it's just a coincidence that Craig's in them." Clyde said, trying to play it off.

But as always, his curious nature got the better of him.

He glanced back at Tweek, "If you don't mind me asking... what... _kind_ of dreams are they?" 

Tweek flushed a deep red, and played with his fingers anxiously as they walked.

" _Nngh_... u-um... I-I don't want to say." The twitching blond admitted sadly.

_Romantic._

Clyde already knew the answer; Tweek didn't need to say it. 

He wondered if this was some kind of side effect; if all patients who went under the Mephesto procedure experienced 'dreams' about the erased person. 

Clyde found himself in the same lecture with Craig later that day.

He plopped down beside him, and gave the moody noirette a cheeky grin. "How's it going?"

Craig didn't answer; he flipped him off, as usual.

"Token, Kev and I are gonna hang out after school. Wanna come?" He asked.

Craig shrugged, but didn't say anything.

"Come on, man," Clyde pressed. "You've been acting weird ever since yesterday."

Craig spared a quick glance to his friend, but still didn't answer. Maybe it would be do him some good to hang out with his friends again... and hopefully get out of this funk. 

When the lecture was over, Craig was reluctantly dragged along into hanging out. They waited in the quad for a bit for Token and Kevin to finish their class, before they headed off campus. Thankfully it was in close proximity to the downtown area, so walking there wasn't so bad.

"Hey! Can we stop in there?" Clyde asked, pointing to a coffee shop up and across the street. "I feel like a coffee... especially if we're gonna play video games all night."

Token furrowed his brow. "Uh... sure?"

As they were walking toward the store, Token tugged on Clyde's arm - hanging back behind Craig and Kevin. "What the hell, man?" Token grumbled lowly. "You know we're not supposed to encourage any interaction between Craig and Tweek. Those Mephesto telegrams said so."

"I just wanna SEE something," Clyde responded, rolling his eyes. "Tweek told me he's been having dreams about Craig... though... he doesn't _know_ its Craig."

Token tilted his head. "He's having dreams about him?" 

"Yeah." Clyde nodded. "So I figure if we slip into the coffee shop and grab a coffee... we can check out Craig's reaction to seeing Tweek. Maybe he's having dreams about him, too." He suggested with a slight shrug.

His best friend shook his head, "This is a mistake." He sighed. "Just stay out of it. They erased each other for a _reason_. Maybe it's better this way."

"I guess." Clyde sighed.

Perhaps he just wished things were the way they used to be. Sure, he'd dated Craig at one point... and yes, following that 'point' he'd also briefly _hated_ Craig.

But Clyde had also seen how happy Craig and Tweek were; how they fit together. And it was sad that it had come down to this.

Reaching the coffee shop, Craig hung back a bit, "Do I have time to smoke?" he asked, already pulling out a cigarette before hearing the answer.

"Yeah." Clyde nodded, slipping inside with Token and Kevin. 

Craig fumbled into the pocket of his hoodie until he found a lighter. Sparking it aflame, he lit the cigarette dangling from his lips, and inhaled the comforting smoke into his lungs.

Leaning against a neighboring telephone pole outside the coffee shop, Craig frowned as he looked around. He didn't even recognize this place.

It struck him as odd, but the more he thought about it, the more he realized that he didn't like coffee. He had no reason to notice it.

Drawing his icy-blue eyes upward, he looked through the window as he smoked - watching Clyde, Token and Kevin ordering their coffees.

But a flash of bright blond hair caught his attention. Focusing his gaze past his friends, he saw that twitchy blond he'd been seeing _everywhere_... the twitchy blond who'd shown up in his dreams. A small blush threatened to creep onto his cheeks just thinking about the intimate dream he'd had the other night. 

_This guy worked at the coffee shop?_

And watching the way he spoke to Clyde and Token, Craig got the impression they were at least on somewhat 'friendly' terms with the guy.

Craig lifted the cigarette to his lips again as he realized something stirring inside him: _he didn't want to stop looking at the blond_...

Something was drawing him in. So much so, in fact, that he found himself flicking away his cigarette and heading inside.   
  


Pushing through the door, Craig approached the counter while the Tweek was just handing Clyde, Token and Kevin their orders. 

"Uh... hey Craig." Clyde mumbled awkwardly; clearly a shocked he'd decided to venture inside.

But Craig ignored him in favor of staring at the blond stoically - who, upon seeing him - had begun sputtering incoherent noises again, and blushing.

It was kind of... _cute._

"What's good?" He asked in his normal, dull voice.

Tweek looked around, "U-Uh... I guess it d-depends on - _nngh_ \- what you l-like?" He answered awkwardly, tugging at his apron strings.

"Just give me something that will taste good." Craig muttered.

The blond nodded quickly and began scurrying around.

That word popped into Craig's head again: _cute_. He glanced briefly toward his friends, who seemed to be watching the exchange with keen interest. _What the hell?_ Why were they acting so tense? Sure, he wasn't a nice guy... and yeah... normally he'd be annoyed by people like the blond behind the counter. But this was a rare time where his intentions actually weren't to fuck with someone. 

When Tweek came back to the counter, he set a cup in front of Craig. Picking it up, he inspected it slightly before taking a hesitant sip.

To his surprise... it was actually good.

"What is it?" He asked.

Tweek flinched, " _Nngh_... j-just coffee... but I p-put a lot of sugar and cream in it for you..." He explained sheepishly. "It's... -ack- three d-dollars." he prompted.

Reaching into his pocket, Craig dumped the money on the counter and spared the blond one last glance - before he headed out of the shop without another word.

His friends followed after, and they all continued on their way.

As he wandered a few paces behind his friends, Craig stared at the to-go coffee cup and took another sip. There was something about the flavor... the scent... the warmth of this coffee, and the precise balance of creamer and sugar that the blond had included - that triggered something in him.

_It was familiar, but there was no explanation as to why._

He'd never liked coffee, hell, he'd never even been tempted to TRY coffee before. He'd remember something like that, right? 

"You know that guy?" He spoke up, flicking his eyes to Clyde as he interrupted the brunette's conversation.

Clyde looked back to him. "Uh... yeah. His name is Tweek Tweak."

"Tweek _Tweak_?" He repeated in disbelief. "You're fucking with me. There's no way that's his real name. That's like, the sound a bird makes." he pressed.

Clyde pouted but laughed, "It **is**. His parents are just weird." He shrugged. "He's mega-addicted to coffee... and he's super paranoid."

Craig lapsed back into silence for a few more blocks, before speaking again:

"Why haven't I met him before if you're friends?" he asked with a slight edge to his voice... almost like he was annoyed that Clyde had never mentioned Tweek before.

The brunette quickly stole a glance at Token - who looked back to Clyde with a glare.

"Well... I just... didn't think you'd get along." Clyde lied, shaking his head. "I don't think Tweek is your kind of person. His weird ticks, and noises, and all that shit would just... piss you off." He downplayed. "You should just... stay away from him."

Clyde frowned when he noticed Token giving him a 'seriously?' kind of glare.

Ok true, he probably didn't need to say that LAST phrase. But Clyde wasn't the brightest bulb in the box sometimes. 

Craig, on the other hand, had noticed the misplaced statement, but didn't comment.

_Stay away from him? What the hell did that mean?_

Figuring he would probably do better just keeping his mouth shut for the time being - Craig continued to sip on the coffee he'd gotten while his mind drifted back to that weird blond. 

  
_Craig opened his eyes, and was met with a sea of white blankets; they were billowing around him like some kind of living, breathing fort. He was on a bed, that much was clear... but the mattress and blankets seemed endless._

_It wasn't dark, either; the atmosphere was safe and warm with the flowing white sheets surrounding him, masking the natural light that seemed to leak in from all sides._

_He felt happy again._

_Crawling through the mass of pillowing white sheets, Craig jumped when he bumped into another person._

_It was the blond. Tweek Tweak._

_They stared at each other in shock for only a few seconds... before slowly smiling. Tweek squeaked and pounced on Craig - actually causing the him to chuckle as he rolled over, trapping the trembling blond beneath him as their arms wrapped around each other._

_As they settled, Craig's eyes drifted over Tweek's face gently; admiring those big, curious, doe-eyes... his soft pale skin... his long slender neck... the way his wild blond hair framed his face..._

_Here... Tweek Tweak was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen._

_Craig was partially lying on Tweek, who seemed more than comfortable being situated beneath him. His fingers absently already playing with the strings of Craig's hoodie._

_Lifting his hand, he stroked the Tweek's cheek affectionately. "C-Craig..." He stammered in a bare whisper._

_He couldn't help but smile and release a contented sigh. The way Tweek said his name tugged at his heart more than it should have._

_Craning his neck down, he nestled his nose against Tweek's. "Yeah Tweekers?"_  
  


_'Tweekers?' he thought to himself, 'Where the hell did THAT had come from?'..._  
  
  
_"D-Don't leave me..." Tweek whispered against his mouth; lips brushing against Craig's with each word spoken._

_Craig stared down at him sadly - before he leaned in, nuzzling Tweek's nose with his own. He closed his eyes and parted his lips, grazing them over Tweek's._

_He pressed them together; ready to embrace the kiss he'd wanted so badly..._

  
  


Sitting up in bed, Craig took in a number of deep breaths as his eyes shot around wildly in a panic.

There was darkness around him now; he was in his room, in his own bed, and it was late as hell. Three-thirty in the morning, to be exact.

Groaning, he flopped back down onto his bed.

These stupid dreams had to stop.

_Seriously... what the fuck!?_

The last thing he needed was for his composure to start slipping. Craig was a MASTER of controlling his emotions: keeping things inside, hidden, and safe. 

But this was getting ridiculous. 

As the days went on - the dreams continued... and now, he found himself sitting in a lecture hall, or in one of the cafeterias, willingly staring at (and studying) Tweek Tweak. Why now? Why was he suddenly noticing how large Tweek's eyes were, or how that blond hair fell around his forehead and framed his face, or how delicate he looked?

It was driving Craig insane. Right to the point of doing something drastic. 

He sought out the twitching blond (ignoring Clyde's earlier warning that they wouldn't get along). "Tweek."

He'd managed to catch the guy enroute to a class, and clearly, off guard as he jumped skittishly; clutching his books to his chest as he looked up at him. 

"It's Tweek, right?"

He nodded, "A-Ah... um... nngh... y-yes?" He answered as a blush already began to creep onto his cheeks. For a moment, they both just stood there, staring at one another. 

"We should eat lunch together." Craig blurting out. It wasn't even really phrased as a question. "Today."

The blond gazed up at him in complete and utter shock; his mouth hanging open a bit. "I-I... um... nngh... r-really?" Tweek asked awkwardly; glancing up and down the hall, like he was expecting some kind of ambush. "W-Why do you want to eat lunch with me?!" He continued, seeming to get more anxious and paranoid, "I-Is someone going to poison my f-food? I-Is there some kind of HIT out on -ack- me?! Oh Jesus!" He trembled, clutching his books tighter to him as his eyes began to well up with tears.

"Calm down, you freak." Craig hissed uncomfortably as he looked around them. People were starting to give them weird looks. "Its just lunch." He growled. "Just come find my table and SIT there. That's it." Craig instructed.

Tweek looked back to him sheepishly; his large eyes still glossy with unfallen tears as he silently agreed. For some reason, Craig felt a familiar tug in his heart... he was torn between being completely embarrassed by the blond's UNNECESSARY freak out... and wanting to wrap his arms around him, and comfort him.

<I>...Why the hell was THAT the second option? WHY would something like that even cross his mind as a possibility?! </I>

Flicking his cold eyes back down to Tweek, Craig felt the tiniest bit of heat rise in his cheeks, before he stormed off down the hall and left the blond alone again.

This was too weird. He didn't feel like himself at ALL. But maybe having lunch with this weirdo kid would help; maybe there was a reason he'd been feeling off for the past two weeks. Maybe he could FINALLY get down to the bottom of this whole thing. Craig just wanted things to go back the way they were... where he didn't care about anything or anyone, and where he wasn't plagued by strange, semi-sexual and HIGHLY intimate dreams that involved a blond freak he didn't even know...

Lunch was awkward. Tweek and Craig didn't really talk... they mostly sat there eating in silence. Craig couldn't help but notice that the blond just drank his coffee and nibbled on a small bag of honey-nut cheerios; it wasn't really a substantial lunch. Occasionally he'd make a noise or mutter something quietly, which would always cause Craig to look up at him - but still, there was no real free-flowing conversation.

"Oh, hey Tweek... Craig." Kyle Broflovski greeted.

The blond flinched and gave the redhead a small smile, while Craig simply shifted his eyes to him with a slight glare.

"You guys are... sitting together?" Stan asked oddly, looking between the two. "I thought-" But Kyle quickly nudged him in the side, glaring at him. Stan furrowed his brow, "Whaaat, dude?" He whined.

Kyle grabbed his arm, "See you guys later." Kyle grumbled unhappily, pulling Stan along with him.

Craig and Tweek watched them go, both wearing expressions of confusion.

"Those guys are assholes." Craig broke the silence by muttering unhappily. 

Tweek flinched and blushed as he continued to pick at his cheerios. " _Nngh_... t-they're not that bad," He defended sheepishly. "I-I just don't like - _nnh_ \- Cartman..." 

"Yeah well... _no one_ does." Craig commented - flicking his eyes to Tweek. "You shouldn't hang out with them."

The blond winced and looked at Craig suspiciously. "I-I... _nngh_... don't know you w-well enough to - _nh_ \- listen t-to you." He replied a bit bitterly, grabbing his thermos and small bag of cheerios as he stood. "I think I - _nngh_ \- should go..."

Craig stood up quickly, feeling an unexplained swell of panic and anger rise inside him at the idea that the other boy was just going to leave him here.

Tweek lifted his eyes tentatively to the tall, brooding figure; detecting the odd shift in his mood. There was a pause that fell between them, as once more, they stared at each other. 

"Fine." Craig huffed, snatching up his knapsack and slinging it over his shoulder before storming away from the table.

 _Why the hell was he suddenly so agitated?_ True, lunch with Tweek hadn't _exactly_ gone as planned... but Craig didn't know what he'd been expecting. They didn't know each other; asking him to eat at the same table had been a stupid move. 

He shouldn't care...

 _'I don't care...'_ His mind kicked in.

This whole thing was stupid, and Craig vowed to just ignore it. Fuck his dreams... they were just that: _dreams_. They weren't reality; they were circumstantial, and easily influenced by even the smallest daily events. In his case: a skinny, twitching blond coffee addict. 

  
"He asked you to sit with him at lunch?" Clyde asked suspiciously.

Tweek nodded and trembled as he clutched his thermos to his chest. "Y-Yeah..."

"So? How was it?" Clyde prodded. He was currently going over some of his homework as he and Tweek sat in the quad again.

The blond blushed, "It w-was... awkward..." He began. "Q-Quiet, but - _ngh_ \- I-I didn't mind that... it was kind of... _nngh_... n-normal? I-It felt normal. F-Familiar." Tweek admitted quietly.

Clyde's eyes flickered up to Tweek with curious interest when he said 'familiar' - but he didn't say anything. "B-But things g-got... um... _GAH_!" The blond tugged at his hair nervously. "H-He doesn't like Kyle and Stan!" 

"I told you." Clyde smirked. "Craig isn't a fan of anyone."

Tweek's eyes drifted to the ground sadly as Clyde stood up and gathered his things. "Look, you wanna come to the movies tonight?" Clyde asked. "A bunch of us are going to see a re-screening of ' _Inception_ '."

Slowly, Tweek nodded before he looked up to the brunette and bit his lower lip. "W-Why... um... _nngh_..." He hesitated, "W-Why would he ask to h-have lunch with me?"

While he'd been scared to go through with it, there had been something bubbling in Tweek's stomach beside nerves. _Excitement?_

"I dunno, Tweek." Clyde sighed. "Craig's weird. Just ignore him." Nodding to the short blond, he headed off.

Tweek sat there, quivering a bit as his fingers fumbled anxiously together. "I-I'm... weird too..." He whispered.

Tweek anxiously waited outside the movie theatre for his friends to arrive. He'd had a hard time NOT thinking about Craig; for some reason, the brooding noirette was infecting his thoughts.

He would be at work - and suddenly, _Craig_ would pop into his mind. He would be sleeping - and suddenly, _Craig_ would fall into his dreams. 

"Tweek?"

The voice made him jump and emit a small noise.

His eyes grew larger when he realized the voice addressing him was Craig. He blushed. "U-Uh... hi..."

"...What are you doing here?" Craig asked in his monotone voice; glancing around the dark Main Street.

Tweek's grip on the strap of his messenger bag increased, "U-Um... well... _nngh_... C-Clyde invited me to the movies." He explained shyly. Glancing away from Craig, he tried to keep his eyes away from the attractive features of the guy. "W-What are you - _nnh_ \- doing?"

"Had to pick up some weed from Kenny." Craig mumbled, glancing down the street, before running his eyes back over the skinny blond.

His gaze made Tweek feel stripped of every defense he could possibly have; not that he was _great_ when it came to hiding his emotions or fears. But still, there was something about the way CRAIG specifically looked at him that was odd...

"Hey!" Token greeted.

Looking beside them, the two saw Token, Clyde and Kevin approaching them. "What are you doing here, Craig?" He asked.

Craig moved his eyes back to Tweek. "Just heading home."

"Oh, you're not coming to the movie? Kevin asked curiously. 

Token and Clyde shot him a quick glare. Of course, Kevin (who wasn't great friends with the group until recently) was only _half_ aware of the drama that had been going on. 

"Sure." Craig agreed, his eyes still staring at Tweek as the group headed inside.

Tweek started absently biting his index finger, trying to keep himself from shouting out and making strange noises. _Craig was coming to see the movie with them now!?_ _Why did he keep staring at him?_

He repressed a shiver as he felt Craig's arm brushing against his own while they walked. Normally, the blond would have freaked out if anyone else walked so close to him... but with Craig... his curiosity was winning out.

"B-But what if that REALLY HAPPENS?!" Tweek screamed as the group left the movie theatre. " _Nngh_! Fuck man... w-what if someone's gotten into my head?! What if the government - _nhh_ \- makes me KILL MYSELF?! O-Or someone else!?" He theorized. "Jesus man, t-they just planted an IDEA in someone's head!"

Clyde sighed, "...See? I knew it was a mistake to take Tweek to see Inception." He mumbled to Token as they walked. "Let's just get home. I've got a test tomorrow." He yawned.

"Why the fuck would you make us see a movie if you've got a test, dumbass?" Token scolded. "You should be studying."

Clyde just shrugged and got into the car with Kevin. "Come on, Tweek, I'll give you a ride." Token mumbled.

But he shook his head, "N-No! What if someone tries to KILL us on the way home, and runs the car off the road?!" He fretted, tugging at his blond hair. "M-Maybe we're already in my head! I-I don't know if you're real! This could be a dream." He stammered.

"I'll walk you home then." Craig grumbled impatiently. "Let's just GO already." Gripping Tweek's sleeve, the noirette began to drag him along down the street.

Token furrowed his brow, "Uh, I don't think that's a good id-"

"Hey." Clyde hissed from inside the car. "Just let them go." He smiled. "If it's meant to be - it's meant to be." 

Token gave him a skeptical look, before glancing up once more at the retreating forms of Tweek and Craig as they headed down the street. 

Poor Tweek hadn't been able to stop blushing since Craig began tugging him along. It was just the two of them alone - wandering down the dark, semi-empty Main Street toward the residential area. 

"So..." Craig began awkwardly - releasing Tweek's arm as he lit a cigarette. "Do you always freak out like this after you watch a movie?" He asked, looking at Tweek oddly. "You know it's JUST pretend. Made up. Fantasy."

Tweek glanced up at him sheepishly, "Y-You don't know that. Maybe it's real! M-Maybe they are HINTING a-at a government conspiracy. How would we know?! M-Maybe it's already happened to me! I-I've been feeling weird lately. Someone could've been in my head! M-Messing around... giving me weird thoughts, o-o-or... erasing things! -- _Nngh_... m-maybe someone planted YOU in my head, and that's why I can'tstopthinkingab--!"

He quirked a brow, "Wait... what?" Craig asked as Tweek cut himself off. 

Tweek's hands flew to his mouth; he let out a series of muffled noises from beneath their cover, like he'd said too much. 

Craig narrowed his eyes. "You..." He started, before stopping again. "What do you mean?" He asked calmly.

"I-I, uh... NGH! I-I misspoke!" Tweek shouted louder than he had to; his tone desperate.

_He shouldn't have said anything; what the hell kind of slip up was that?!_

You didn't tell someone you DIDN'T know that they were planted in your head; that you couldn't stop thinking about them.

The rest of the walk was done in silence, though occasionally, Craig would steal a glance at Tweek, and the blond would do the same. 

"Where's your apartment?" Craig asked with an irritated sigh. 

He wished he could talk to this kid. He'd spent the past week thinking about him - and then, when he finally got to be alone with the blond... he didn't know what to say.

_He felt anxious, confused, vulnerable and angry all at the same time._

Tweek stopped dead in his tracks and looked around them curiously.

Craig saw the expression on the small blond's face fall. " _Nngh_... oh. W-We... passed it." He admitted - tears almost instantly beginning to well up in his large eyes like it was the most tragic mishap that could have happened.

"Jesus." Craig grumbled, rolling his eyes. "Don't _cry_. Which way?" He asked uncomfortably.

He didn't do well with crying people in general... but for some reason... the blond on the verge of tears made him feel a bit over-protective.   
  
The blond meekly pointed down the street, "Y-You don't... have to come. It's fine."

Instead, Craig shook his head and grabbed Tweek's hand in his own, leading him back down the street toward a series of buildings. 

"Come on." He mumbled. He tried to keep the blush from rising in his cheeks - but he wasn't doing a good job. Thank god it was dark outside.

_Why did he have to take Tweek's hand? There was no reason for it; why didn't he just let the blond go home? They were close enough, and he could walk by himself. And he had to be, what?... 21?_

Whatever the answer, Craig knew he didn't want to leave Tweek just yet. It was like this unknown, invisible magnet was drawing him to the blond.

Tweek, on the other hand, was engaged in his own internal debate.

As strange as the whole situation was, he liked the feeling of Craig's larger hand holding his smaller one. 

"H-Here." The blond squeaked, stopping in front of a particular walkway. 

Craig reluctantly stopped as well, and took a moment to study Tweek's apartment building. He wanted to remember what it looked like, in case there was a next time. "Oh."

Hesitantly, he released Tweek's hand and let it fall back down to his side. 

"T-Thanks for - _nngh_ \- walking me h-home..." he shifted his eyes back up to look into Craig's.

To his surprise, the guy was already staring down at him. For a few minutes, the two seemed content to just stare at one another; Craig's gaze was firm, piercing and deep... while Tweek's was wide, curious, and vulnerable.

"Wanna hang out?" Craig found himself asking. 

Tweek furrowed his brow and blushed. "B-But - _ngh_ \- it's late..." He admitted, glancing at his watch.

"Not now, dumbass." Craig sighed, rolling his eyes a bit. "Just... later. Sometime." Wow, that sounded awkward.

Craig couldn't believe he was actually ASKING someone to hang out with him. He never asked people; people asked him. Why he felt inclined to ask this sketched out blond was beyond his comprehension. 

But despite every alarm going off in his system, despite how _weird_ this whole fucking scenario was, and despite how he was going against _every_ natural instinct in his body... Craig _wanted_ to spend more time with Tweek. 

"U-Um... I-I..." Tweek stammered as his cheeks continued to get redder and redder. 

Craig took a step toward him. "Just say yes." He grumbled.

"Y-Yes." the other repeated quickly. 

Nodding, Craig turned and headed down the street without another word. The further away he got, the more inclined he was to glance back to see if Tweek was still there.

To his surprise, the blond WAS still standing outside; he was closer to the front doors now, almost halfway in, but seemed to be watching Craig walk away.

But when he noticed Craig looking back at him, Tweek quickly scampered inside and out of sight.

Looking back ahead, Craig kept his head down as he walked... 

He was able to keep himself composed; to keep himself stoic when he talked to Tweek.

But he wasn't able to stop a small, bare smile from spreading on his lips as the blond's mesmerizing eyes popped back into his mind.

  
Both Tweek and Craig didn't speak much to each other when they were on campus, nor did they really see each other, aside from the occasional class together or in passing. 

But both were certainly thinking about one another. 

_Tweek fascinated Craig; why the hell would someone twitch so much? Why was he so addicted to coffee? Where did all this paranoia come from? And why had he never noticed him before now?_

While Craig normally preferred things nice and boring, Tweek seemed to be the exception.

Tweek, in a similar fashion, couldn't help but be entranced by Craig. He'd found out more and more about the guy's reputation from several people - and most were rather negative. They said he was cold, quiet, moody, temperamental, and even selfish.

But despite all that, Tweek still found himself wanting to overcome his WORST fears and paranoia... in order to get closer to the loner.

While at one of the small coffee-outposts between classes, Tweek was alarmed when he turned - and came face to face with the mysterious noirette. "GAH!" He exclaimed, nearly spilling his fresh coffee.

"Mmm." Craig mumbled, not really uttering an apology. "Tonight."

Tweek tilted his head in such a way that Craig couldn't help but think was adorable. "T-Tonight?" He repeated gently.

"We're hanging out." Craig told him firmly. "Your apartment."

The blond nodded quickly, not bothering to try and hide the blush spreading on his cheeks. "E-Eight?" Tweek asked shyly.

"Yeah." 

Then he just walked away.

Tweek couldn't help but follow his frame as he retreated down the hall; other students moving aside for him - careful to avoid getting in his way. The blond admired Craig's presence; his influence... and wished he could be so strong. He wished people took notice of _him_ in that kind of way.

With butterflies in his stomach, Tweek went to his remaining classes - unable to concentrate on much else, except the fact that Craig would be coming over.

It was potentially a risky situation.

_What if they discovered they had nothing in common? What if Tweek's habits and over-reactions pissed him off, and he beats him up?_

The blond shuddered and tried not to let his fear get the best of him.

For once, he was going to try and go by his heart...

When he got home, the blond had a shower and did his best to tidy up his apartment. Despite his quirks and habits, Tweek wasn't overly messy by nature. Sure, sometimes he was, but cleaning was an activity that helped him stay focused and calmed his anxiety, at times.

Standing in front of his mirror, the blond looked himself over. Fuck, he hated the way he looked; he'd always thought he was ugly... even when he was younger.

No one had ever been interested in him. He'd never even had a boyfriend or a girlfriend.

It was pathetic. 

"W-Why am I - _nngh_ \- doing this?" Tweek asked himself. Why would anyone want to be friends with him? And really, what was he thinking inviting a _stranger_ over?

The more his over-active imagination thought of having Craig over, the more he realized how risky it was. _What if Craig was some kind of insane drug user? What if he was a thief?_

The heart couldn't be trusted... so why was Tweek being so foolish about this? That stupid piece of him had steered him wrong before, and the blond had trusted people in the past he shouldn't have.

Besides, his heart was also the thing that had been acting up lately: aching, like it was missing something. A lingering, sinking feeling - the one you got when you've forgotten something important and can't recall what.

The doorbell brought him out of his thoughts, and Tweek flinched.

Looking over his naturally 'disheveled' appearance again with a frown, the blond scampered down the hall of his apartment, and opened the door to see Craig.

"Hey." He greeted, already seeming bored.

Tweek nodded, and tried to give a small smile - though he was sure it probably came across as more painful. "H-Hi..." 

He stepped aside and allowed the taller boy to enter. Tweek watched, curiously nibbling on his lower lip, as Craig examined the inside of his apartment - semi-curious, but again, unimpressed. 

"S-So, um... _nngh_... what do you w-wanna do?" Tweek asked hesitantly as he led Craig into the living room.

Craig shrugged and plopped down on the couch, as if he'd already been there a hundred times; like this _wasn't_ awkward. "Let's just watch a movie or something." He mumbled, drawing his icy colored eyes up to Tweek.

He nodded and picked out a movie for them to watch; _Shaun of the Dead_.

Both sat at opposite ends of the couch as it started, though Tweek kept getting up to make frequent trips to refill his coffee in the kitchen. He'd offered his guest a drink, but Craig waved it off.

He couldn't help but notice, however, that each time he came back to sit - Craig was a few inches closer to him. This continued each time Tweek had to get up and leave... and soon... they were sitting so close that the fabric of Craig's hoodie was almost touching the fabric of Tweek's button up shirt. 

Tweek found himself growing increasingly more anxious, but he did his best to keep his mouth shut.

When the part of the film arrived when Shaun's mom began to pass away - Tweek was leaning forward in his seat, completely transfixed by the emotional peak on screen. His fingers idly played with his lower lip as his large eyes glistened with sympathetic tears.

_He couldn't imagine having to shoot his mother (or anyone, for that matter) if they became a zombie._

"Are you crying?" Craig's deep voice asked.

Tweek blushed and kept looking at the screen; far too embarrassed to look back at his guest. "N-No..." He stammered.

He heard Craig release a long sigh, then, a hand wrapped around his arm, and tugged him back.

Before Tweek knew it - Craig had his arm around him in an uncharacteristically sympathetic display, holding him almost protectively. "It's just a movie, remember spaz?" He reminded him.

"I-I know." Tweek huffed out a slight embarrassed breath.

He might get wrapped up in these stories and ideas, but he wasn't STUPID. "I-I just... _nngh_... c-could you just shoot someone you love? Even if ...they b-became a zombie?"

Craig shifted his eyes down the blond he was cradling to his chest. "If I had to protect other people and myself... then yes." He answered.

This felt nice; it was oddly comfortable, despite Craig's fear that he might be crossing the line into more dangerous territory. But Craig could honestly say: there was something soothing about consoling someone else. Which was fucked up. He'd never felt the inclination to do so before. 

  
When the movie was finished, both Craig and Tweek had slipped in to more casual conversation: general knowledge about each other which included their best and worst classes, favorite music, movies, etc.

In fact, they seemed to be having such an easy time talking to one another, that they barely moved from their previous position - Craig's arm was still cradling Tweek close, and the blond seemed content just resting against the other's chest.

He worried briefly that his occasional noises or twitches would annoy Craig, but... unlike everyone else, Craig didn't really seem to mind; every time it happened, Tweek would feel the other boy's thumb gently rubbing his shoulder, like he was absentmindedly trying to soothe him.

For the first time in weeks, both (battling their separate feelings of anxiety) were content; that feeling of emptiness, or the idea that something was 'missing' briefly vanished.

_Why was he so relaxed around Tweek? They didn't know each other THAT well, and yet; he'd just spent the last hour chatting with him about what he liked, and what he didn't like._

It took YEARS for people to find that stuff out about Craig Tucker.

He never allowed anyone to get too close too fast. But for whatever reason... this blond brought something out in him.

But Craig's natural defense told him he shouldn't be so open...

So, around eleven o'clock at night, Craig cleared his throat awkwardly. "I should probably go..." He mumbled regretfully, sitting up and away from Tweek. "It's getting late. We have school tomorrow."

Frankly, he felt a bit freaked out. He wanted to get away before anything more happened with Tweek. His inner 'peace' was being replaced by 'panic' and he had no idea why.

As he got up and headed for the door, Tweek followed him nervously.

"I-I would - _nngh_ \- like you to c-call me," Tweek admitted, giving Craig a small smile. "...Would you d-do that?" He asked, a hopefulness laced in his tone.

Impressed by the blond's sudden bravado at outwardly asking him to call, Craig nodded - and handed his phone over to Tweek.

As he began to put his number into the noirette's phone, Craig couldn't help but dance his eyes bemusedly over the blond's face. He recalled the dream he'd had where he and Tweek had been beneath the blankets... and couldn't help but notice he looked just as angelic and sweet now as he had in his dreams. 

_Why did he feel so fucking vulnerable around this guy?_

When he was finished, Tweek handed the phone back to Craig, and he stuffed it into the pocket of his hoodie. 

"I-I would like it..." Tweek repeated again; he really didn't want Craig to think he was just being polite.

Craig nodded. "Sure." 

Slipping out Tweek's front door, the two exchanged a lingering look, before Craig headed down the apartment hallway and toward the elevator.  
  


When he finally got outside, Craig took a deep breath.

It had started to snow; large snowflakes fell and danced gently around him as he headed home... alone with nothing but his thoughts of Tweek. 

He was plagued by what he had just experienced... so much so, that he ended up walking faster than usual to get back to his place.

By the time he reached his own apartment, he was practically bounding up the stairs and into his apartment.

Shutting the door, Craig opened his phone like a man possessed.

_He didn't know WHAT had gotten into him..._

All he knew was that something inside him was twisting in pain. He wanted so badly to play it cool... but he just couldn't help it.  
  


Clicking the button, he held it to his ear; holding his breath slightly as he listened to it ring...  
  


_"Jesus!" A voice answered. "T-That was fast."_

Craig could only smirk at the sound of Tweek's voice. 

_"Do you -nngh- miss m-me?" He asked, the tone surprisingly playful._

Craig relaxed back on his bed and as he stared at the ceiling. "Oddly enough, I do..." He admitted with a small smile.

_"G-GAH! Y-You said 'I do'..." Tweek pointed out on the other end. "T-That means we're -nngh- married!" He awkwardly tried to joke._

It was so absurd and adorable that Craig was unable to keep himself from laughing a bit. "I guess so."

For the first time in weeks, Craig felt the tiniest bit... _happy_...

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired and heavily influenced by one of my all time favourite films: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. 
> 
> I love the idea/concept of erasing someone from your memory, and the repercussions that could follow. Especially if the individual is reliving these memories as they are removed one by one. This is basically going to be that movie, so... if you've seen it, you know what Craig is in for (lol).


End file.
